Nine - Meddler
by TwistedSpace
Summary: There are certain things in life you shouldn't tangle with. Murderers, thieves, assassins and killer clowns. What are you supposed to do when life throws all four in your face? What will happen when Kyu meddles with the lives of the four main protagonists of Hunter X Hunter? Hilarity ensues. Sequel to Nine - Reminisce.
1. Chapter 1

******I DO NOT OWN HUNTER X HUNTER OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. THAT BELONGS TO NO-LONGER-ON-HIATUS-TOGASHI. HOWEVER KYU DOES BELONG TO ME SO DON'T USE HER WITHOUT MY PERMISSION.******

**A continuation of my other fic, Nine- Reminisce. You won't need to have read the fic to understand what's going on in this one, the other fic is more background than anything else. But this story will make a lot more sense if you read the other story. Trust me. It will.  
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**Enjoy the story and please don't hesitate to review :D**

****************_Italics _are for thoughts and sound effects.  
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Zaban city. A city defined by its prosperity and the shady characters that fill the bustling streets. In the summer months it was extremely popular as a tourist sight, since Summer was when most people came to enjoy their signature ice-cream: Peanut Pecan Surprise. One girl in particular was clutching two triple stacked cones in her hands, trying to lick up the rich, creamy goodness before it dripped onto the pavement. Her black attire made her stand out from the rest of the crowd, who wore refreshing shades of blue, green, yellow and red. Black hair, black clothes, black eyes, black boots. She wasn't pale, not really. The short puffy hair that framed her face coupled with her rough manner of speaking gave more than one stall owner the impression that she was a boy. Not that she cared. Ice-cream was her priority in this blistering heat.

"Watch where you're going you little brat!"

_Splat. _Two balls of ice-cream rolled off her cone. Normally she wouldn't let the ruffians who had the nerve to bump into her demand an apology but-

"Sorry." There were more important things to do. Like finding some shade. The Chinese girl cursed her nerdy friend for not giving her a map of the city.

_"You can't even read maps. What's the point?" _Just remembering his stupid annoying voice pissed her off. She didn't need to read a map to use it. She could just ask someone else. And the heat. Oh god the heat. She even went as far as ditching her jacket and coming in only long pants and a long-sleeved half-shirt. Thinking back, maybe it wasn't such a good decision.

_Too... hot..._

_Can we just ditch the top altogether? It's sooo hoooot..._

_Sure. If you want to be a public embarrassment._

_But I'm wearing bandages underneath! It's not like I'll be naked or anything._

_Half naked is bad enough._

The girl groaned lightly. There was no more ice-cream left in those cones. Maybe eating so much sugar at once wasn't such a great idea either. Sugar made her feel nauseous if she consumed too much.

_Well... it was either that or heat stroke. _She thought grimly. _Ermegerd shade!_

The shade she sought was under a tall building, four great pillars supporting the front. Which was incidentally one building away from the address she was trying to get to.

_Bzzt. Bzzt. _The girl threw the empty cones away in disgust and flipped her phone open. The screen displayed the following message:

**Incoming call from Shal(nerd).**

Good. Just who she needed. "Yo Shal. Are you sure about the address you sent me? Is that really where I need to go for the Hunter Exam?"

_"Of course. I used the Hunter website to affirm the starting location."_

"Really? A steak house? Not the big ass building right next to it?"

_"Come on, you should put more faith in me. We have been friends for almost five years."  
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"Pfft yup keep exaggerating. More like barely four and a half. But fine, I'll take your word for it. What did you say the password was again?"

_"Give me a sec... Here it is! Ok. Ask for if the back room is open once you enter, then ask for 'the steak combo that opens your eyes to the light'. Then the chef will most probably ask how you would like your steak done. Tell him-"_

"Most probably? Shalnark, will he or not?"

_"He will. Shh- stop interrupting me. Here's the important part. You must reply 'grilled under a low flame, until cooked' to his question. Did you get all that?"_

"Thanks Shal, I got it. By the way the password to Feitan's account is ichthus1337. Don't ask why."

_"Cool. Have fun at the Hunter Exam."_

"Thanks again man. You have fun messing with his account too. Let me know if it's worth the broken bones I'm sure to get when grumpyguts finds out. Seeya." _Beep._

* * *

><p>Getting into the underground chamber was a breeze. Staying there, however, proved to be much harder. It took all of her will to not use her ability to instantly create a portal to a comfortable bed. When a small green man handed her a tag labelled #11 she almost dropped the round piece of plastic. Late night gaming with the two hardcore gamers in the Ryodan was NOT a good idea at 3am in the morning. What made her more unhappy was that she had lost all 37 rounds they played Super Smash Bros Brawl. If she saw one more mocking text message from Phinks... heck, she'd portal right back to the apartment and unleash her fury.<p>

_Keheh~ Unleash me? Sure~_

_On second thought, no._

That would prove dangerous for the both of them. Plus, she was quite fond of Phinks. He knew how to have fun. Sleeping until the examiner arrived was her best option for now. The cold hard ground wasn't a terrible choice of bedding. Only every time a new examinee stepped out of the elevator their footsteps would echo loudly in the steel-plated walls of the underground chamber. So sleeping wasn't actually an option.

The girl waved at the little green man, trying to get his attention since none of the other 14 people in the chamber would talk to her. The little green man ignored her. Apparently his job only entailed handing out tags and did not include answering questions.

The elevator doors slid open again. A short chubby man walked- no, waddled- out. His big nose was only overshadowed by his even bigger smile as soon as he saw the girl.

"You must be new to the Hunter Exams! I'm Tonpa. Nice to meet you."

_Damn it. This dim lighting is making me even more sleepy. _"Yeah. Hi. I'm Kyu."

"Really? It's rare to have 9-year old boys take part in the Hunter Exam." Tonpa's smile grew wider at the easy prey.

_Wow... he got both my gender and age wrong... _"I'm not nine 'years old'. My name is 'Kyu'."

Tonpa laughed awkwardly at his mistake. "Well, I make mistakes. Here," he rummaged through his bag and pulled out an orange coloured soda can. "Take this drink as my apology."

"..." The drink was so obviously spiked with something. Not that Kyu cared. But sweet drinks caused her to feel sick. Unless... "Caffeine?"

"Sorry, what?" he was taken aback by her sudden inquiry. "Oh. You want to know if there's caffeine in it. No, it's just orange juice."

"Then no thanks." The fat man shrugged and walked away. There would be other rookies who would fall for his trick, he was sure of it. Most of the people gathered at this point were veterans, like himself. The rookies usually arrived later. Kyu, seeing the fat man had left her comfort zone, went back to trying to get a few hours of nap time.

* * *

><p>Just when she had grown accustomed to the noise in the large underground chamber when...<p>

An overwhelming bloodlust, thick as slime and equally uncomfortable to feel pumped out from the elevator. Her senses sharpened immediately, all traces of drowsiness gone from her body. The bloodlust disappeared as quickly as it had materialised. Kyu frowned. It couldn't have been her imagination. No other examinee seemed to be troubled by anything other than the people standing next to them.

_What the hell... _The source of the bloodlust originated from the strangely dressed man emerging from the entrance. If the little green guy felt anything he didn't show it. The redhead in the playing card outfit was given a tag and instructions like any other examinee then left to his own devices. Now that he wasn't glowing with a big red 'danger' sign, Kyu settled down to sleep again. Applicants were rushing in now. One after another, sometimes in groups; more often not. Well. There went all the chances of her getting any beauty sleep. His bloodlust boosted her wide awake.

Three hundred. That was when the next distraction came in. She recognised his aura immediately. Kyu even walked up for a better sniff, the coconut scented shampoo confirming her doubts.

"Illumi. 'Sup." The human pincushion turned around to face her. "Never thought you'd do the Hunter Exam. Don't you make enough money already?"

_Klik. Chatter. _"Kyu. You should keep your voice down before I regret not ending you all those years ago." Creepy. Like usual, Illumi's voice was kept at a casual tone even when threatening to kill her.

He paused before continuing, glancing in the direction of a certain white-haired lad. "You remember Killua. I'm here to keep an eye on him."

Kyu raised an eyebrow. "Afraid that a member of the Zoldyck family might be in trouble? That's... new?" With his disguise on, Kyu couldn't tell what expression he wore. Not that she could even with all those pins out of his head.

"Just stay out of the way."

"Yes yes, I'll stay low. You don't want him to know you're here, right?" Illumi chattered to signal his approval. " 'Kay."

Kyu sat down by the wall. Cold seeped through the metal to the unclothed parts of her back.

_Ah~ So cool~_

* * *

><p>12 hours. That's how long Kyu had been in that chamber. 12 hours of boredom. 12 hours where she couldn't call any of her friends for idle chatter. And noone else around her would take part in decent conversation. Noone but that annoying man, Tonpa. Kyu overheard some other examinees whisper 'rookie crusher' to each other as he talked to the newest trio.<p>

_Innocent looking kid, tasteless old man and a blonde... guy? Girl?_

_They look less tense than everyone else in this stupid dungeon. Let's go have some fun._

_Wait. Something's up with the guy from earlier. He's leaking bloodlust again._

Sure enough, a scream pierced through the crowd not 2 seconds later. Most of the examinees turned to see a guy's arms disperse into petals. Kyu, on the other hand, saw every intricate cut made by the magician's 3 of diamonds.

_Dangerous. _The first word which came to her mind.

_So damn awesome, c_ame right after.

_Number 44... how ironic. The two numbers of death. I'll keep tabs on him throughout the exam. Now, the other three..._

She peered around just in time to find the green kid spit out his drink. _So it was poisoned after all..._

_Who cares? It's not like you can get poisoned through food or drink._

_Shh._

Kyu strode over to the trio as soon as Tonpa went to bother other rookies. Up close, she could tell the blonde guy was actually a guy. "Hi."

Suit-guy jumped. _I should really stop using Zetsu all the time. _"Are you guys rookies too?"

Vegetable-boy was the first to answer. "Yup! I'm Gon!"

"My name is Kyu."

This time her peers made no mistake with her name. "Nice to meet you. These are Kurapika and Leorio. We came here together."

Kurapika stared the girl down. In his eyes, she was no more trustworthy than Tonpa. The Kurta saw the low number on her tag and instantly distrusted the child before him. No ordinary child could get here so early unless they were formidable. Kyu gave no fucks. Leorio was completely oblivious to Kurapika's hostility.

"I never thought I'd meet another boy my age doing the test!" Gon laughed.

Kyu laughed along with him, more out of amusement for his mistake than anything else. Cutting her hair right before the Exam had been a great idea.

"And how old are you?"

"12!"

"..." He was 3 years her junior. Hardly 'his age'. Not that she was going to complain. Having a cheerful buddy in the Hunter Exam might spice things up. "I'm 11." It was technically true. Her biological age halted after she made that vow on her ability. Amplification of her healing ability went as far as stopping her from growing up. It had it's pros and cons, but not being able to advance in physical strength really got on her nerves. She could train her Nen abilities (which she still knew as 'Magic') and they would get stronger, but lifting weights and running exercises could never increase her physical prowess.

"Welp. I'll see you guys at phase 2?" Kurapika was making it very clear he did not want Kyu to join their group. His glare was intense. A few more seconds and Kyu would get a hole burned through her head.

"You can always stick with us Kyu. We don't-"

"Gon, the examiner's here."

Indeed he was.

_Lililililililili. "&$^ *#!" _Kyu let out an almighty string of swearwords that would do gangsters proud. The frequency of the ringing hurt her eardrums and gave her a blistering headache.

Satotz, appearing to not have heard her sudden outburst, introduced himself as the examiner of the first phase.

"The Hunter Exam will now begin!"

_Yeah yeah, blah blah final caution blah injury, death. Who cares? Everyone gathered in here wouldn't have turned up if they gave a shit about risks. _

_Although most of them will end up injured or dead. Shal said it happens every year. Over a quarter of the applicants die before they reach the third phase._

_Hehe~ Let's see how many we can kill~_

_Oh fuck no. I'm not letting you into the driver's seat unless I can't handle the situation._

_Aw. You're no fun._

_As opposed to you? Who happens to be another projection of my split consciousness?  
><em>

_If that's what helps you sleep at night~_

_Hey you guys, he's started to move. Let's go._

"So slow." Everyone was running so slowly. So achingly slow. Kyu wanted to rush straight to the end of the tunnel and be done with it. But at the same time she didn't want to risk being disqualified. She wanted that Hunter License. A familiar tuft of blue hair bobbed up and down a few metres away from where she was running. Kyu was fairly sure Illumi wouldn't feel bored at all. Not more than how bored he usually looked when he ate or talked or killed. That guy was a friggin robot.

But beggars can't be choosers, and if there was someone she could talk to she'd take anyone. Casually she closed the gap between them, weaving through several blue uniformed men. Then she saw another mop of fiery red hair bobbing next to the assassin's. _Oh fuck. Is that who I think it is?_

_Blue clown outfit. Check. Stupid pointed shoes. Check. Evil pedophilic grin. Check. Ok I'm out of here._

_Too late. He saw you._

_Aw fuck._

His head was twisted back, smiling at the girl with one sly amber eye. _Fuuuuuuck. I never liked clowns. Never will._

"Hisoka. What are you looking at?" She heard Illumi ask. Hisoka's lips moved but Kyu couldn't hear his reply properly over the 'Hoh hoh hoh' of some random shorty jogging past with a laptop. Seriously though, who jogs with their laptop open?

Now Illumi was staring at her too with that ghastly disguise of his. The Chinese girl sighed. She had no choice but to approach them now.

"Hi?"

"Why hello~" Holy crap, he sounded as creepy as his attire. Kyu couldn't help but consider how likely it was for young children to encounter this particular weirdo in dark alleys. And his smile. God would he ever stop smiling? Even Illumi's expressionless face was less... spine-chilling than this guy. And the worst thing about running next to the magician was his smell. He smelled so disturbingly like strawberries. Sickly sweet strawberries. _Ugh._

Seeing as how Kyu wasn't prepared to introduce herself, Illumi went ahead and did it for her. "This is Kyu. A useful acquaintance."

"Ah~ So you two know each other?"

"..."

"Kyu. It's rude to stare."

"Y-yeah sorry. Lack of sleep doesn't do me any favours for social encounters."

"Kyu... as used in martial arts or the counting number?"

"Number."

"Hmm~"

Another shiver ran down her spine. Being around this guy was reeaally unsettling. _Especially _when he licked his lips like that. Illumi could see her discomfort very visibly, and so could Hisoka. And Hisoka was putting no small amount of effort into creeping her out even further. Illumi turned a blind eye on his 'friend's' behaviour. You only need to know someone for so long to know what sort of bullshit they're into.

The conversation died. Kyu ran faster and faster, trying to escape the two demons she'd gotten mixed up with. Hisoka, being the huge asshole he is, sped up and matched her pace. Illumi did the same. It wasn't long before they'd reached the front of the marathon. The chubby laptop guy was there as well.

"HOH hoh HOH hoh HOH hoh!"

_...These two..._

_Let me out. I can deal with them easily~_

_There are people in this tunnel. 402 witnesses who will brand me as a murderer. Chrollo-san will not be pleased if I get my face on the news._

_Then let me kill them as well! Come ooon._

_NO._

The scent of strawberries wafted up her nostrils. Hisoka ran too damn close for comfort and-

_The hell? When did Illumi get on my right? What are they trying to do, sandwich me?_

_It's not to late to take up my offer~_

_NO! Now shut up!_

* * *

><p>4 long hours of jogging in between two men and listening to the huffs and puffs of other runners was grinding at Kyu's sanity. Every now and then an examinee would collapse but that was about it. In the dimly lit distance... were those... stairs? 60km or so of running and now stairs? Could the day get any better? Apparently not. Kyu was running right behind the Satotz, and almost tripped over the first few stairs when he took the first leaping bound up them.<p>

_What the- he's not human! How the hell is he running like that? And up stairs!_

Someone yanked her back up by her shirt before she could fall. "Watch where you're going, Kyu~"

Of all the people to help her, it had to be him. "Thanks... I can balance fine on my own." If he really thought stairs could trip her up, then he was either a sexist bastard or just plain stupid. The mocking look in his eyes told her otherwise. No, he was just playing around with her like some toy. Kyu sighed. There wasn't much she could do. Grudges weren't her thing.

Another hour of running brought them into sight of the exit. _Finally... I can't wait to get far, far away from these two._

Suddenly, a flash of green and white surged past her. Gon- the green kid- appeared to be racing Killua to the exit. Kyu felt... glad. He was a nice kid, and she didn't exactly want to see him fail at the first stage. Killua she didn't care about so much. That assassin brat probably wasn't even trying.

_Stupid Shal-nerd... jinxed me before the Exam even started. 'Have fun' he said. This is the polar opposite of fun!_

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**I don't know what to say. Erm. I tried?**


	2. Chapter 2

"A-a-achoo!" Kyu rubbed her nose. The stupid fog tickled her nose every time she inhaled. Still, fog was better than strawberries or coconuts, especially_ who _these scents belonged to. Thank god for short attention spans. Kyu sat down next to the exit, curling up against the cold concrete. Everyone was sooo slooow. More than 3/4 of the applicants were still inside the tunnel, hoisting themselves up the stairs.

_I suppose... a few minutes won't do me any harm. _She could feel her eyelids drooping, head lolling forward. _Just 5 minutes. _The cracks in the concrete blurred then-

Kyu snapped awake. She studied the scene before her, stood up and-

"F**KING HELL!" Kyu screeched to no one in particular. Mostly because there was not a living soul in sight. Not for the first time, she'd overslept and had been left behind. The swamp was quiet. Wait, no. Kyu strained her ears. There it was again. Screaming._ Perfect.  
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Kyu dashed so quickly, she quickly became a blur of darkness flickering between the trees. Bodies lay scattered around the swamp, overgrown with fungus or feasted upon by animals.

_Just where the heck am I?_

_Hm. I dunno, maybe you should have stayed awake to hear what the examiner had to say. At the very least you could have stayed awake for the entirety of the first phase. If you get disqualified in the first phase, you're going to become the laughing-stock of the troupe. And you don't want that, do you?_

_Screw you. I do what I want._

_Which is also what we want. So hurry the hell up and catch up to the group._

_Wait. Do you feel that?  
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_What? No?_

_Oh it's just the feeling of being in control of my own body. Nothing much._

_OHHH BUUUUURN._

Maturity was a quality the girl rarely possessed. But then again, who needed maturity when you were stuck as a kid forever?

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><p>Boots ground to a halt in the damp earth. Something was wrong. The trail of bodies thinned, and the screams stopped. The swamp was deathly quiet again, which meant Kyu had no lead to follow, no humans to track. There were only trees, mud, grass, trees and more trees. <em>That's right! Trees!<em>

Kyu bounded up a knobbly old oak to get a bearing on her location. The fog was clearing, giving her a clear sight of the vast swamp. There! Movement at the base of a mountain. Kyu leaned forward and squinted for a better look. The dots were most definitely moving, and not so far away either. She did the math in her head. 5 minutes, max. That's how long it'd take for her to catch up. Kyu boosted herself off the tree and-

She frowned. Why wasn't she moving? The girl tried jumping again. Nothing happened. Her feet remained stubbornly rooted to the spot. Or more accurately, vined. Thick green vines wrapped around her ankles, securing her in place. Kyu slashed at the vines with sharpened nails and they came apart in an explosion of slimy yellow sap.

"Yuck." These were new boots! Keyword: 'were'. Now they're as dirty as any other pair she owned. Kyu hopped off the tree and tried wiping her boots off with some fuzzy leaves, which only made the stains worse. She sighed. The world really did hate her.

Nose to the air, Kyu tried to find anything- just anything that didn't smell like fog or swamp. She sneezed again. Nope. Nothing but swamp, fog and strawberries in this stupid- wait. Strawberries? Deep breath. Yup. Strawberries. And that could only mean one thing.

_Hisoka! Sweet. He's nearby.__ Heh, geddit? 'Sweet'? As in strawberries?  
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_Oh my god, that wasn't remotely funny._

_We all agree that it would be in our best interests if you left the joke-making to another._

_F**k you guys._

Kyu ran through the fog, carefully swerving around suspicious looking strawberries (which surprisingly did not smell like strawberries) and delicious looking mushrooms. She had a feeling there was more to this swamp than what met the eye. She kept sniffing every now and then, just to make sure she was on the right track. When she felt the familiar surge of killing intent, there was no mistaking who she was pursuing. Then just as the bloodlust spiked, it died down and disappeared.

"Tsk." How inconvenient. Some poor fool probably just died to him while putting up all 3 seconds of a fight. Leaves brushed past her arm. Almost there. His bloodlust was back. Kyu wondered if the idiot who stumbled upon the mad magician could last until she arrived. Kyu burst through the shrubbery in time to see Hisoka struck on the temple by a round object before he could snap Leorio's neck like a twig. Other bodies lay strewn around the clearing, unfortunate souls who'd been slain before the boy could help.

"I made it in time..." he mumbled. Hisoka immediately lost interest in Leorio and turned to Gon instead, pedophilic smile at the ready.

_Oh dayum. _Gon emerged from the mist, face scrunched in anxiety. No doubt he was already regretting attacking the clown. _Good luck there bud._ _I don't really want to die yet... but I don't want Gon to die either. He's a nice kid. I'll just wait behind this tree until he needs my help. There's no way Hisoka knows I'm here, my Zetsu is always active._

_Why's Leorio half naked?_

Hisoka's deep voice rang loud and clear. "Not bad, little boy." As expected, he wasn't injured, only amused by his weak attack. "Is that a fishing pole? What a fascinating weapon~"

_Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. _The magician walked slowly towards Gon, hand outstretched. "Allow me a closer look."

Leorio was having none of that. He roared "Your opponent is me!" and charged at him, stick positioned to strike. Kyu winced as a powerful uppercut smashed into his face. Having felt many of those from Feitan during training, she knew exactly how much it'd hurt later.

"DAAAAH!" The boy wasted not a second, seizing Leorio's sacrifice as a chance to strike. But as he swung down on the redhead, Hisoka 'poofed' away, reappearing behind the boy a split second later. Kyu rubbed her eyes. She'd seen him move, but how did he managed to leave a smokey after-image? Questions, questions.

"You came to rescue your friend?"

In the next few seconds Hisoka goaded the boy, moving around his new toy faster than Gon could see. He even went as far as crouching down, palm on chin.

"Such a good boy~" Shiver. Kyu rubbed at the goosebumps on her arms. Gon turned around only to swipe at nothing but mist. Seriously, how was he not freaking out by now?

"And that expression..." Gon swung his fishing pole again and again, refusing to let himself panic after every single one of his attacks were dodged so easily. Even from her hiding spot, Kyu could see the fear building in his eyes. The despair. And Hisoka was enjoying every moment.

"Nice..." _Fweet. _The ball float passed over his shoulder harmlessly.

Hisoka's eyes narrowed with glee. "I'm getting excited now..." _Fweet._

Kyu blanched. _My__ god, he's actually a pedophile. _She watched as Gon made one last desperate attempt to best the magician.

"HAAAAAA- urk!" A clawed hand reached out and fastened around the boy's throat, strangling him. Gon struggled and clawed at his wrist in vain. Just when Kyu was about to jump out and knock Hisoka's grip loose, she felt his bloodlust recede. She relaxed. Gon was safe. For now.

Those white fingers loosened, opened. Gon fell to the ground coughing. Hisoka crouched close and said a few more words (Kyu strained her ears to catch what he said over the gust of wind but failed) before straightening up and picking up Leorio. She did, however, hear Illumi's voice over a receiver telling Hisoka they were nearly at the Phase Two site. She spared one last glance at Gon to make sure he was okay before dashing after Hisoka. He was her ticket out of the swamp. But boy, he was fast. Maybe even as fast as Feitan, she wasn't sure. Hiding her presence was impossible without losing him in the thick fog. Kyu grit her teeth.

_I can either enhance my speed and reveal my presence, or I can stay hidden and risk losing him. My life is on the line for the former, and my Hunter license on the latter._

_It is more logical to choose the second option. The Hunter Exam can be re-attempted, but your life, once lost, cannot be recovered._

_To hell with it! No risk, no gain. I'm gonna catch up to the cray-cray magician. Cus y'know, my dignity is also on the line. What'll Sharlnerd say if I fail the exam in the First Phase?_

_Then do as you wish._

_Kehehe~ I'm always ready if you need me._

_With any luck, I won't._

Kyu reinforced her legs and feet with Nen, instantly doubling her speed. With next to no trouble, she caught up with the red-haired man and ran to his side. Leorio dangled from his shoulder like a wet rag.

"Hi again!"

Hisoka smiled, as if expecting her. "Hello~ Did you enjoy the show?"

"Huh?!" For the second time today, Kyu almost tripped out of surprise. "You knew I was there? How?"

"Se~cret," Suddenly, staying around this nutcase didn't seem like such a great idea after all. Kyu gulped. This was so very, very bad. She considered her options. She could stay and see how the situation turned out or she could portal the hell away before Hisoka's unpredictable mood could take a bad swing. Option 2 sounded very tempting... but before she could carry it out, Hisoka laughed. "No need to be so nervous~"

_Eh. He's in a pretty good mood._

_I see no harm in remaining by his side. There is no need for you to forfeit the Hunter Exam._

So Kyu ran along with him, though not within his reach. She wasn't _that _faithful in people. Gradually, the mist thinned out and a road emerged through the wet grass. Trees lined the sides of the path like a forest. And Kyu liked forests. Soon they arrived outside a giant set of gates, where the other 140 or so applicants huffed and puffed. Hisoka dumped the unconscious Leorio at a tree then left to join Illumi. Kyu searched the clearing for any sign of Gon.

3 minutes before their time was up, Gon arrived with his golden haired friend Kurapika and found Leorio rousing from his slumber, with no memory of what took place in the swamp. Kyu left them to chat among themselves. Her interest only went as far as Gon's safety, nothing else. The main reason behind her reluctance to be seen was Kurapika. She had a feeling she wasn't wanted by the teenager. She also wasn't prepared to risk her butt by getting too close to Mr-brother-complex's dear little Killua.

Satotz explained what was happening next, then wished the examinees luck before he left. The gates slid open, revealing the Second Phase site, as well as the Second Phase examiners.

"Will all applicants who passed the First Phase please enter?"

* * *

><p>Kyu was practically dancing with joy. The moment Menchi announced the theme of the Second Phase, Kyu's grin stretched from ear to ear. Perfect, just perfect. Cooking was, if she might so humbly declare, her area of expertise. So long as they didn't expect dessert, she was going to ace this Phase. Finding the pigs was easy enough, killing them was no sweat either. But finding the accompanying mushrooms, herbs and berries took a little longer. By the time she returned to her cooking bench, everyone was already halfway through roasting their pigs.<p>

No matter. Being late had its merits, she could watch Menchi and Buhara's reactions to other applicants' pork dishes and adjust her own to suit their tastes. Also, no other applicant could copy her recipe. Kyu smiled. Killing two birds with one stone. Lady Luck was smiling. And so was Hisoka as he unveiled his creation.

_Hey look, the clown actually knows how to cook! His dish isn't just a whole roasted pig (Surprisingly enough...)._

_What's that weird brown blob? Wait... really?_

_It appears applicant number 44 prepared a... souffle. A pork souffle._

_...Yup. Menchi's ragin' hard. Well, time to focus on my dish._

The girl cut off the tenderloin and chopped it into bite-sized pieces. Next, she minced the herbs, sliced the mushrooms and crushed the berries to let out their flavour. When she was done with the cutting, Kyu heated two frying pans and poured oil in them, then proceeded to fry the pork chunks until they were tinged with brown. Now it was time to add in the other ingredients. She needed to control the flame and stir the two pans constantly to prevent the dishes from burning and to make sure the ingredients were evenly cooked. When everything was taken care of, Kyu heaped the stir-fry pork on two plates, a big one for Buhara and a small one for Menchi. Then she changed her mind and transferred it all on the big plate. Other applicants were gathering around her bench, trying to get a whiff of the heavenly smell rising from her dishes.

Just as she was about to wash the frying pans, Kyu noticed Gon bringing up his dish. Well, his 'dish' was more along the lines of a fully roasted pig decorated with flowers. Kyu clicked her tongue in annoyance. If Menchi was surprised by how young he was then she certainly didn't show it. She just treated him with like the other applicants and launched his dish into the didn't even season it, not to mention those flowers tasted bitter and nasty. _No wonder Menchi threw the pig off the table. Oh look. It's blondie's turn._

Kurapika's pig was sliced horizontally and lined with lettuce, tomatoes and... pineapple?! Who in the right mind would mix tomatoes and pineapple chunks together, with pork of all things?! Ok, maybe it did work, but only if the ratios were correct. By the looks of it, Kurapika added way too much pineapple as decoration, and his dish was a little on the sour side. She almost felt sorry for the boy when Menchi started ranting at him about taste, even going as far as to comparing him with Leorio. Almost.

Kyu beamed. _My turn!  
><em>

By now Menchi was in a terribly foul mood. The corners of her mouth pulled downwards into a frown. By the looks of it, Kyu was the last examinee to present her platter, and Menchi wasn't going to let her off easily. Kyu slid the plate across the table.

"Here's my dish. Stir-fried pork."

_Well, _Menchi thought, _this doesn't smell too bad. It looks a bit on the ordinary side. _Kyu held her breath as Menchi dug a fork through several pieces of pork and popped them in her mouth. Buhara hadn't even touched the platter, but she knew the final verdict lay with this sharp-tongued Gourmet Hunter.

Menchi chewed.

And chewed.

...

"Hm. Not bad, little boy." Kyu sweatdropped. _Even the examiners... I really hope that __they won't put me down as 'male'.__ if I pass the Hunter's Exam.  
><em>

Menchi ate a few more bites. "Not bad at all. Say, what do you think of becoming a Gourmet Hunter if you pass the exam? I'll pass you for this phase, so if you make it past the other phases come find me. I'll get you started on the basics."

"_SAY WHAT?" _Every applicant in the park chorused in outrage. People began to yell.

"This pipsqueak gets to pass while the rest of us don't? I call bullsh*t!"

"Unfair!"

"Scandalous!"

Kyu rubbed her chin and said, "I dunno, Gourmet Hunter does sound pretty cool. I'm quite interested in cooking too... so..."

Menchi uncrossed her legs and stood. "That settles it. I'm stuffed." ("Damned hag only ate like three bites..." Killua growled) "Therefore, no one passes. We're finished here!"

A smug grin crept onto Kyu's face as she watched the crowd b*tch at the two examiners. She could see Menchi trying to keep her anger in check, until a particularly chubby applicant tried to attack the examiners. Which wasn't the wisest action to take unless he happened to be Hisoka or Illumi. With one swipe, He was sent flying towards the gate by Buhara.

_Speaking of Hisoka... _she thought, glancing over in his direction. _Sh*t._

The clown readied a jack of hearts between his fingers, ill intent as clear as the makeup on is face. Kyu considered her chances of getting out alive and gulped. The odds weren't bright, and neither was her future at this point. The girl inched backwards, knife held behind her back at the ready.

_"That said, it would be excessive to fail every single applicant." _Everyone tilted their gaze skywards to take a look at the airship floating directly above them.

_Huh? I thought I passed? _Kyu thought as she shielded her eyes from the sun just in time to see a silhouette fall from the sky. She identified a pointy beard before a cloud of dirt covered the applicants. When Kyu finished scrubbing the dirt from her eyes, she heard the _clack clacking _of wooden geta. They belonged to an old man with a pointy beard.

Kyu stared. _Weeow. His earlobes are like Franklin's! _

_Stop worrying about his earlobes and start worrying about how damn strong this geezer is._

_But... his earlobes..._

_Shut up about his earlobes already! What are you, five?_

"The Chairman of the Selection Committee. He's in charge of the Hunter Exam... Chairman Netero."

A respectable silence followed Menchi's statement. Kyu saw Hisoka lick his lips as he watched the Chairman. If Hisoka was interested, then she was sure this old guy shouldn't be messed with. But then Kyu noticed a flash of emotion pass behind his eyes- was that... recognition? Blink. Netero was back to giving his introduction, all traces of recognition non-existent.

_Huh, _she thought.

* * *

><p>73 applicants lined up along the chasm that split the mountain and gave it its name, Mt Split-in-Half. Wind blew in strong gusts from the chasm. Not nice fresh wind like you'd smell on other mountains, but wind carrying the stench of dead critters and bird feathers. No one seemed to mind the stench other than Kyu, who clutched her nose in disgust. Though she had to laugh when applicant #255 fell to his backside from a particularly strong gust with a tiny whimper. Everyone else was fairly fascinated by the webs that hung 50 metres down the chasm- Spider Eagle webs, sporting their current assignment, Spider Eagle eggs.<p>

Kyu took a step back from the edge. As tempted as she was to grab a few eggs for her personal interests, she wasn't very fond of heights and in particular- falling. Ok, heights she had no problem with at all. Throwing oneself off a mountain with no visible solid surface beneath you? Now that was frightening. The feeling of free-falling didn't disagree with her insides.

Fatty took a step back as well. "No reasonable person would jump down there..." he stammered. _Damn right. _Kyu agreed with him wholeheartedly. _But then no reasonable person would become a Hunter either..._

She watched as the applicants threw themselves off the edge one by one with... enthusiasm?! Kyu shook her head. Crazy, all of them were crazy. The girl inched towards the chasm, peering over the edge at Gon and his friends hanging from the web.

_Hm? Is that Killua next to him? Heh. I bet Illumi isn't overjoyed at his 'lil bro finally finding a friend._

"Afraid to jump?" Kyu nearly _did_ jump over the edge in shock. She spun around, wary. Getting snuck up on twice in one day was officially the new record for jumpscares. Netero stood behind her, lazily stroking his beard.

"I kinda passed the Second Phase already so..." Kyu muttered, "do I still need to do this?"

"Absolutely." Kyu groaned inwardly. The old geezer was teasing her, she was sure. Other applicants who'd overheard the conversation also glared at the black-clad girl.

Kyu sighed. _Peer pressure... jeez. _With a quick run-up, Kyu launched herself across the chasm, latching on to the opposite cliff-face. She figured that with all those people on the net it wouldn't be wise to add any more weight onto it. So she waited for everyone to let go and catch the gust of wind back up the mountain before jumping like spider from one side of the chasm to the other, snagging a bunch of eggs in the process. When Kyu was sure there was no one watching, she quickly opened a portal and shoved the eggs through into a storage room, save for the one she kept for the Exam. The girl then scaled back up the cliff by reinforcing her fingers with Nen and digging them into the rock like grapples.

Everyone who passed had their names checked off before dumping their eggs in a large pot. When Kyu walked over to show Menchi her egg, the blue haired woman said, "Good job. By the way, Chairman Netero would like to have a word with you inside the airship."

"?"

Menchi smiled. "He'll be waiting for you in the dining area. Don't worry, the Chairman is a kind person."

* * *

><p>The airship was finely carpeted and air-conditioned, but Kyu was far too disturbed to enjoy these luxuries.<p>

_The Chairman wants a word with me? The hell? I haven't done anything wrong! Uh... apart from falling asleep in the First Phase. I hope he didn't disqualify me for sleeping. Or not getting an egg like everyone else. *Gulp*_

_Relax. The dude probs just wants to talk or some sh*t. _

_'Some sh*t' as in the Ryodan? Chrollo-san specifically warned me to watch what I do in the Exam, lest I reveal my ties to the Troupe. Damn. What if the old dude figured it out somehow? Maybe I should just gtfo right now._

_No. That is unlikely. You were not mistaken when you saw the recognition in his eyes earlier. There is a 73% chance he wishes to discuss that particular subject._

_Even if he does know me, I doubt it's for anything good. The things I've done in the past 4 years... well, my slate isn't clean._

_If so, then even if you choose to escape this encounter it will prove difficult to escape the next. As the Chairman of the Hunter organisation, he has the forces of hundreds of skilled Magic-users at his disposal. You will be hunted down._

"Ugh..." Her thoughts never provided her with any comfort, only more paranoia. She could feel her pulse in her neck, and the sweat building in her hands. If Kyu saw her reflection in one of the windows, she'd have seen her teeth bared in agitation. The habit of snarling like an animal when she felt threatened never died, unlike her parents.

Kyu laid a clammy hand on a set of double doors labelled 'Dining Area". Forcing herself to wipe the emotions off her face, she steeled her nerves and entered.

...

...

Netero, the Chairman of one of the largest organisations in this world, stood on a table with one leg cocked like a crane. What made him more comical was the cup of tea perched on his bald forehead. Kyu stared. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to laugh or walk right out of the room. She settled with oggling at the old man.


	3. Chapter 3

Kyu sipped her tea and observed the chairman of Hunter organisation. Apart from asking her to take a seat, not a single word had been exchanged between them. Netero stirred his tea, not making eye contact with his guest. After what seemed like an age, he finally spoke up.

"Are you enjoying the exam?"

"Not really."

"Did any of the phases prove difficult?"

"Not really."

"Hm." Netero nodded. "Your parents certainly did teach you well."

The girl spluttered mid-sip. "My parents? Hah... I'm sorry, but you seem to be mistaken. I'm from Ryusegai."

Netero settled back in his chair and smiled lazily. "Did Fugan ask you keep your identity a secret? I do understand you family's need for secrecy, but there's no need for caution with me my dear girl."

A flash of surprise flitted over her face. _How does he- No. He's testing me. He must be._

"But then anyone would be cautious around a strange old man like me. You see, you were barely a toddler when I visited your family."

"...You know my family?" _Impossible._

"Why of course. Fugan was a dear friend of mine, and he would often brag to me about his dear little niece. You, Hei." He twiddled his fingers playfully. "Don't tell me that Fugan never mentioned me? How cruel~"

For the briefest of moments Kyu panicked. _He knows! __How- why- what- This crazy old man can't be telling the truth! Uncle never mentioned having any friends outside of the village. Netero _must _be lying..._

His brow wrinkled in concern when he noticed her black eyes harden."Is something the matter?"

"Just how do you know all this? As far as I'm concerned, Fugan never brought up your name. I would prefer if you didn't act so.. _familiar _around me Chairman Netero, because quite frankly, you're like any other stranger to me." Kyu hissed, then raised her lips in a snarl. "My parents are _dead._"

The girl watched his reaction carefully. Shock showed on his face, genuine and innocent. Maybe he wasn't lying after all... "That's... unfortunate." He stroked his long white eyebrow. "And Fugan failed to protect them?"

"Fugan is dead too." Kyu said in a flat voice.

Once again, that grim silence. Isaac Netero was no longer playful. His grim expression reflected the girl's.

Silence spread between them as Netero grasped for something to say. The airship was silent but for the hum of the electrical lights.

"I'm terribly sorry to hear-"

"It's fine. 'Happened eight years ago."

"Was it from natural causes? And if not, do you know who...?"

"No and yes."

"Perhaps I could offer some assis-"

"No. I can handle it myself."

"I owe your uncle a favour. If there's anything- anything at all- you just need to ask."

Kyu tilted her head thoughtfully, asked, "Give me a free pass on the Hunter Exam?"

"Haha, no. I doubt you would have any trouble passing it with your own skills anyway." He switched his attention to a clock hanging from the far wall. "It's getting quite late. The other examinees will start to board the airship soon. Go get rested up for the next Phase, Hei. I'll be seeing you later."

"Ok. But please stop calling me that. I go by Kyu these days." Kyu got up to leave and slid her chair back against the table. Just before she could escape, Netero caught her by the shoulder. _Damn, this old man is fast... _she thought.

"There's just one more thing I don't understand. By my knowledge, you should not have been more than seven years of age when your family was murdered. How did you survive? And who trained you?"

The girl hesitated before replying, "Some guy picked me up off the streets. He taught me magic too. Now if you don't mind, I have some sleep to catch up on."

Netero let go of her wrist and watched as she vanished. Then he thought, _Magic?_

* * *

><p>So many questions churned in her mind like a bad stomach ache. So many unanswered questions, so many mysteries. Kyu rubbed her face into the carpet and tried to stop thinking. She was over-thinking, Machi would say if she were here. But unanswered questions bothered her above anything else.<p>

_Hmph. You think you're the only one with problems? Everyone has their problems, probably even that mean blonde guy from earlier._

_His name is Kurapika. Or her._

_Yeah yeah, who cares? The thing is-_

_He's getting up. Where's he going? It's like midnight.  
><em>

_We should follow._

Kyu waited until the boy was out of the room before sneaking out of the room herself. Leorio almost tripped her over when he tried to hug her leg as she walked past. A quick shake accompanied by a look of disgust dislodged the sleeping man from her pants.

Kurapika walked along the hallway, passing the dining hall and a suspiciously loud training chamber. Along the hallway passed a few others, but they gave him no trouble. When the boy arrived at a suitably secluded area, he sighed and leaned against the railings to watch the sparkling city below. His eyes were soft, and the expression he wore was nothing like his wary daytime self. Kyu smiled to herself. _He's not as tough as he tries to look..._

Kurapika had no idea he was being tailed until Kyu approached his side silently.

"Hey,"

The boy stayed silent. He wasn't startled by her arrival, but his guard was up nonetheless. Kyu sighed. What happened to that wistful look three seconds ago...?

"Look. I don't know why you're so hostile towards me, but I haven't done anything to get on your bad side. So I'd appreciate if you at least told me why you don't like me."

"You lied."

Startled, the girl said, "Pardon?"

"You lied to Gon. I do not know what you lied about, but I just know you did."

Kyu stiffled a laugh, "Doesn't everyone lie?"

Kurapika had nothing to say. He went back to staring out the window. But Kyu hadn't quite given up yet. "Beautiful, isn't it?"

"..."

"Back where I live, you'd never see this sort of scenery. Unless there were large gatherings of fireflies in the trees of course."

"..."

"But then I always did prefer the seclusion of a forest to the busy streets of the cities."

"..."

Kyu paused to survey the flickering landscape. "Have you been to a forest, Kurapika?"

"Yes. I grew up in one." Kyu hid her smile behind her hand. Finally, the conversation was moving along.

"Are from the NGL? I heard forests over there are free from human pollution."

"No. I am not. But I haven't returned to my home for over three and a half years... Not after..."

"?"

"My clan. Massacred. Every single member were cruelly murdered by selfish, heartless criminals."

"...I know the feels."

"Huh?" Kurapika turned to look at the girl for the first time. "What do you mean?"

"Believe it or not, my entire village was massacred too..." She chuckled sadly, "I was lucky enough to have been elsewhere while everyone was slaughtered- or maybe unlucky enough. Finding nothing but corpses in my burning village... it was devastating to say in the least. And do you know the irony of it? I saved the very man who murdered my parents. Sometimes, I wonder if it would have been better to just have died with them. Because maybe then the ghosts of my friends wouldn't haunt my dreams at night..."

Kurapika felt... an inkling of kinship between their shared pasts. He knew exactly what it was like to discover your loved ones lying in pools of blood, everything you'd known burning to ashes. He knew the nightmares of the angry ghosts, and he let their rage fuel his own. "Kyu... If you died that day, you wouldn't have the chance to avenge your village. So that is a good thing, right?"

"I don't even know anymore." She smiled painfully down at the ground. This hadn't been her plan. She'd only wanted to befriend the boy to relieve her boredom, but here she was, spilling her deepest secrets to someone who didn't even trust her. "What's right and what's wrong? Am I supposed to take revenge? Do I even want to? It's been almost a decade... yes, I'm older than I look, Kurapika. The past should be left as the past. Letting your emotions control your life... dedicating your existence to revenge- is it worth it? Is it what they would have wanted?"

Silence. Kurapika had nothing to say to that. It was something he'd been thinking of since he'd met Gon

"But I made a promise all those years ago. A promise to never hold a grudge. And you shouldn't either, Kurapika. In the end, your revenge will bring ruin to yourself and the people around you. Is that what you want?"

"Yes. I also made a promise to honour my dead clan mates."

"Then I wish you luck. Just... when you accomplish your goal, what are you going to do? What are you going do when that hatred driving your life has burnt itself out? I've seen people who've succeeded at revenge. They're empty shells of human beings. Their whole life, spent plotting for that one glorious moment; but then what?"

"...I will worry about that problem when the time comes."

Kyu sighed. "My apologies. I didn't mean to rant so much crap to a stranger. But seriously, reconsider your choices. Goodnight."

She'd made it down the corridor when she heard a soft voice call to her.

"Kyu?"

"Hm?"

"I... appreciate your counsel. But I have chosen my path, as have you. We may have different ideals, but friendship isn't impossible." Kurapika tried a small smile, and held out his hand. "Can I trust you, Kyu?"

The girl returned the boy's smile, walked back to him to grasp his outstretched hand and laughed, "I hope you can. 'Cus I'm awfully gullible."

"Well then, good night. I will see you tomorrow at the third phase."

"Yup. 'Night."

They headed their separate ways until Kyu realised she was going the wrong way. _Well... this is embarrassing._

_Just find another room to sleep. Big deal._

_Hah! You can't even swallow your pride and turn around?_

_Shut up. It's called dignity._

_Of which you have none._

A low growl rumbled in her chest. Sometimes; just sometimes, the girl wanted to start using medication again if only to shut those annoying voices up. The reason she chose not to... well, she'd never hear the end of it from her comrades. Seriously, those guys were so selfish.

The door creaked open. Kyu peered inside, then entered when she saw it was (much to her relief) empty of any emotionless assassins, murderous clowns or the most frightening of them all; snoring males.

Coast is clear. The tired child curled up on the floor, feeling the vibrations of the airship buzzing against her body. Kyu let her eyelids lower and-

* * *

><p><em>-opened her eyes to find herself sitting on a stool. Elbow on the counter, Kyu sighed. Of all the dreamscapes she could have landed in... why did it have to be this stupid little nightclub in a stupid little town? Fragments of her memories served as the site for the colourful scenes that played out in her dreams. Strangely, none of the dancers had faces; empty black fog covered their heads.<em>

_But then they never had faces._

_ Through the flickering lights of Budweiser signs and the stench of beer, underneath the smoke from Marlboro 100s and above the epileptic strobe light, across the room from the watchful eyes of the bartender- that was where she saw him. The only one who had a face amidst the faceless spectres in this world constructed on the pylons of her fragile mind.  
><em>

_Kyu was pretty sure there was some meaning behind his individuality. But she could never figure out why- or even when she did, the thought never stayed for long. So instead she passed the time in this secluded world of hers like every other night.  
><em>

_"So like," the girl sipped her drink; it tasted like liquified fire, "I've always wondered about your name."_

_Her companion swirled his drink. Like usual, he said nothing. But Kyu wasn't discouraged by his cold demeanor. Most of her conversations with him were pretty one-sided, even in the waking world.  
><em>

_"Hm. Feitan. What does it stand for? I'm guessing it's Chinese, right?"_

_"..."_

_"Fei can stand for so many things- fly, trash, fat... Heh. Trash pile. There's no way that's the right meaning."_

_"..."_

_Kyu drank in the ever fading music and closed her eyes. Pointlessy, since in her dreams she could see herself from a third person angle. Provided an interesting sight for the main event later; but also quite annoying._

_"...Ne, Feitan, have I ever told you my name?"_

_"..."_

_"Suppose not. Or maybe you already knew from my parents' hit files. On second thought, this crazy old man told me I'm not in any official records. So maybe you don't know."_

_"..."_

_"Hei Fong. It means Black Wind in Chinese. It's not a bad name... but nobody calls me that. 'Cus I've never told anyone see? Which is a good thing, since I don't want Kuroro-san to steal my abilities. I _know _he's after my abilities. Damned greedy bastard."_

_"..."_

_"Gah. I'm so bored." Kyu looked around and saw a long silver pole protruding from the ground. "I thought this was a nightclub, not a stripper club. Ugh, I blame Phinks for dragging inside that den of human indecency. Actually I blame Phinks for a lot of things, such as bars. ...Man I'm so bored. Feitan do you feel like embracing your inner prostitute and doing a nice pole-dance for me? I'll tip you."  
><em>

_"..."  
><em>

_"No? Ah well. I have no money anyway." Kyu paused to consider the chances of her survival if she'd asked the same question to real-world-Feitan. She had to admit, those percentages were pretty low.  
><em>

_Feitan's hand shot out with no warning, closing around her windpipe like an iron vice. "Finally-" the girl choked, "-had enough of my bullshit?"_

_She wondered what would come next. The crack of her neck breaking? The ripping of a head being separated from the torso? Gradually, the grip grew tighter until she could no longer breathe. Wonderful, just wonderful. He was going to slowly asphyxiate her. What a boring way to die.  
><em>

_When the dark spots began to cloud the edges of her vision, Kyu stopped struggling and let calm wash away the pain. Then she watched her lifeless body fall past the phantom floor, past the tumble of high-heeled shoes and boots, falling..._

_Falling..._

* * *

><p>Carpet. That was the first thing she tasted as the sun almost blinded her. The girl coughed, the ghostly grip of her killer still lingering around her neck.<p>

_Damn it. Why didn't I get myself a pillow before I went to sleep..._

_'Cus you're stupid. Duhhh._

_Ey, shut it._

Groans involuntarily passed by her swollen tongue. God, she hated mornings. She would never come to understand how the other female members of the troupe could get up in the mornings no less elegant than they were the night before. She, on the other hand, had to deal with what looked like an angry porcupine perched on her head. Plus the stiffness in her knees was just another reason to want to punch the sun in the face.

Slowly, painfully, the girl dragged her tired body to the door, almost falling over in the process. By the way she lugged her boots step by step down the corridor, one would think those boots were lined with lead. Relief; she'd made it to the dining hall. And that was as far as she was going to go for another hour. The table she'd slumped on was occupied by none other than the four protagonists, Gon, Killua, Kurapika and Leorio. The younger boys stifled their giggles while Kurapika tried to keep the smile off his face. Was this pile of dead looking black cloth really the boy he'd talked to last night?

Killua grew cat ears as he concocted a brilliant prank to play on the girl who'd apparently passed out on the table. Carefully he unscrewed the lid off the pepper shaker and balanced it in between the wild strands of unruly black hair.

"Killua, Mito-san told me not to waste food,"

The cheeky boy held a finger to his lips. "You're not the one wasting it Gon, so shush."

Gon frowned. What Killua was doing wasn't very nice, but... his friend's naughty 'hue hue hue' was enough to discourage the boy from ruining his friend's fun. Kurapika pretended he hadn't seen anything and counted the chairs in the room. Leorio gave Killua a thumbs-up and grinned.

Minutes passed. Kyu still hadn't moved. Breakfast was served. When everyone returned to their seats with a plate of bacon, fried eggs, baked beans and toast, Gon pointed out to Killua he'd taken an extra plate. The white-haired boy grinned. The next stage of his elaborate prank was set.

The youngest Amori brother just so happened to be passing their table when his eyes bulged. Balanced on a mop of black hair, was a pepper shaker, an artfully placed plate of bacon, eggs, toast and beans, a salt shaker and a cup of orange juice. The tower wobbled every now and then, but was otherwise stable. Imori gawked at the leaning tower of breakfast in awe, then hurried away to join the long serving line.

After what seemed like an age, Kyu's fingers twitched and curled into a fist. The mastermind of the prank grinned in anticipation through a mouth full of fried egg. Both Kurapika and Leorio slid their meals along the table away from the impending threat.

"Nnngh..." It was all Killua could do to contain his laughter when Kyu groaned lightly.

Gon grabbed his empty cup and his dirty plate to put into the washing pile, while secretly praying Kyu would somehow survive barrage of breakfast soon to rain down on her head.

The remaining trio watched as the girl began to lift her head.

3 seconds.

Orange juice tilted dangerously, threatening to spill to one side.

2 seconds.

Now the plate was beginning to slide backwards. The uncapped salt flew through the air, tiny crystals arcing gracefully towards the clean carpet.

1 second.

Killua allowed a triumphant smile to stretch across his face. Victory belonged to him!

Kyu yawned. And plopped a piece of bacon in her mouth. She frowned, then added some salt and pepper to the eggs before taking a swill from her cup of orange juice.

"WHA-?!"

Kyu wiped her eyes with a sleeve and squinted at the surprised boy. "Thanks for grabbing breakfast for me, man, I'm so damn tired."

Jumping from his seat, Killua ran behind her, peered under the table, and glanced at the floor wildly. _What in the world?! _he thought as he searched the carpet for a fleck of salt or a drop of liquid. _How is this possible?!_

Gon came back with fresh cup of apple juice and tilted his head in confusion. Then he smiled and patted Killua on the back and said,

"Killua! I knew you wouldn't be so mean to Kyu!"

Killua sheepishly turned around. "Y-yeah..." he said, still looking bewildered.

The other two teenagers sat there gawking like startled fish. Leorio's bacon flopped off his fork; halfway to his wide open mouth, forgotten. Kurapika was the first to recover. Distrust masked his brown eyes, but before he could start throwing accusations, the girl asked, "Kurapika, you rest well?"

He nodded, jaw still set in a grim line.

"That's good then. I'll be seeing you guys later in the Third Phase. May the odds be in your- heh, just kiddin'. Seeya!" Kyu pushed her chair back, took the plates to the counter, then ran out of the dining hall. The four males watched until the doors slammed shut, then went back to eating breakfast like nothing strange had taken place. Some things were best left unquestioned.

* * *

><p>Kyu strolled down the hallway of the airship, chuckling as she remembers the stunned expression of her would-be-pranker. Then she let her grin drop as she pulled her phone from her pocket.<p>

**1 New Message.**

"Who's wanting me now..." she muttered and opened the mail.

**Unknown Number.**

**Next mission is confirmed. 1st of September, Yorknew City.**

**Kyu, you're in charge of notifying Nobunaga and Uvogin. They're the only two who don't have phones. I trust you to carry the message to them.**

**-Kuroro**

_Tap. Tap._

**Message deleted.  
><strong>

The phone disappeared back into her pant pockets. Kyu leaned against the railing and folded her arms thoughtfully.

_I wonder what we're after this time..._


	4. Chapter 4

Trick tower rose tall in the distance, the lone structure on a raised cylinder of earth. Many applicants approached the windows to see its magnificence like children outside a candy shop.

Kyu (as ironically as it sounds) was not one these children. She was cooped up in the disabled toilet, tapping at the screen of her phone. She held the small device to her ear and drummed her fingers on the sink impatiently.

**Duuut. Duuut. Duuut. Duu-**

_"Yes?"_

"Kuroro-san, what's the meaning of this?"

_"I thought my message was clear; the spider will assemble a few months from now. I will send the details to you later."_

"I ain't stupid, Mr High-and-Mighty. The second part of your message. Why do you only want me to get those two? Don't you usually ask me to notify Omokage as well?"

_"We have a new member."_

The girl bit her lip. A new member could only mean one thing. "...When?"

_"Two years."_

Kyu didn't reply for a long while. Sure, Omokage was an asshole with a superiority complex at the best of times, and insulted her eyes non-stop, but it didn't stop her from feeling a twang of grief in her heart. 4 years. That's how long she'd known the doll maker. 4 years of on and off meetings, jokes and the occasional holiday shared with each other.

_"End the call. This conversation might be overhead. You're in the Hunter Exam, are you not?"_

"Relax. I can sense if anyone get close. Plus I'm sitting on a toilet, which smells horrible by the way."

_"I trust your ability to use En as much as I trust you to win a game of chess."_

"Who the hell said I'm usin' En? I've got ears, thank you very much!"

_"You can't-"_

"Shaddup. It's safe to speak so just put some faith in me."

A dull crackle on the other end of the call told the girl Kuroro was heaving a sigh. _"Very well. Is there anything else you'd like to ask?"_

"Hm. Don't think so, no. Bye."

Kyu flipped her mobile shut. The cubicle was small, but fairly quiet. Until the speakers blared:

**"I apologise for the long wait. The airship will soon arrive at its destination.**"

The airship shuddered, almost tipping the girl off her feet. Kyu cursed, slid the door open and came face to face with an all too familiar redhead.

"GYAH!"

"Good morning~"

Kyu clutched at her heart. _The fuck?! I didn't even hear, sense or smell this clown? Ugh... I blame the vaporised piss and faeces floating around in the bathroom._

_Mr Spider was so correct when he said you couldn't sense for shit. Was he eavesdropping on our phone call?_

_Indeed._

_Shut up and help me deal with this pedophile!_

"Gawd, you scared the shit outta me!" Kyu glared at the man grinning widely in the hallway.

She pushed past him, flinching when she came into contact with his cold skin, then bolted towards the exit not daring to look back. She escaped the airship in such a way that could only be described as 'gtfo'ing.

* * *

><p>"Ahem... Everyone, the exam's Third Phase will begin here, at the top of Trick Tower."<p>

"Trick Tower?"

"To pass this phase, you must reach the tower's base alive. The time limit is 72 hours."

Kyu groaned. Another long boring phase of waiting for people to die. Oh the joy!

"With that, we will now begin the Third Phase. I will pray for your success."

The little green guy walked away and left them to their own devices. The airship took off shortly, stirring up gusts of wind with a loud, headache-inducing _whirrrr. _

_Brr..._ The girl clutched at her midsection and shivered. The temperature dropped by 10 degrees at this altitude. _Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to leave my jacket behind..._

_And wearing a half-shirt is?_

_Half-shirts are awesome!_

"Focus on the task at hand DAMN IT!" Kyu screamed at herself, ignoring the judging glances. Brain damage. Of all the injuries to get from Nen initiation, this one just had to lower her attention span to that of an average idiot's. Maybe even lower. There was always the medicine; but according to Shalnark she wasn't the most amiable person after the liquid entered her bloodstream. But since she wanted to make friends in this exam, using it was out of question.

"Kyu...? Are you ok?" Gon was behind her, concern showing clearly on his face.

"Wha- Oh hey Gon. Yeah I'm totally cool... heh... hehe..."

He beamed and said, "Let's go and see what there is on this tower!"

"Sure."

Leorio and Killua weren't sure whether they wanted her around at all. They flanked her, one on each side, glowering with the intensity of a thousand suns. Kyu sighed and thought, _At least the taller idiot is blocking some of the wind..._

"Oaah!" Gon leaned over the edge of the tower and gazed down. Kyu also stepped forward, measuring the distance between their current height and the ground.

_Hmm... A few hundred metres, give or take. I could jump down and survive the fall... but I recall that green guy specifically stating I must get to 'the tower's base'. Not 'outside the tower's base' or 'down to the ground'. So I'll need to get into this pole somehow..._

_Punch it! Punch the ground!_

_And make these three more suspicious? No thanks._

_Why do you care? You won't be able to become friends outside of this exam anyway._

"Are we supposed to climb down?" Leorio hugged his suitcase tightly, lest his precious bag of fall to the unforgiving hard ground below.

Kurapika replied, "That would be suicide..."

"And probably a breach of the rules. We were told to-"

"Maybe for a normal person- hup- but a top class rock-climber can handle this, no problem." The quartet watched on, fascinated. Though Leorio wasn't too happy this phase involved scaling down a 400m tall tower.

Kyu growled as she was interrupted by a smug man, who loped over to the side and swung himself and held on vertically to the wall of the tower. She turned around so they couldn't see her pouting, and let the 'top class' rock-climber have his way.

"Wow..." Killua breathed.

"He's going down pretty fast,"

?!

Kyu felt a change in the wind. She leaned over the edge and shouted, "Oi! Get back up here! Somethin' ain't right!"

The man ignored her. He was far too absorbed in his advantage over the other applicants.

His short-lived advantage.

Four grotesque flying creatures (_Babies? The hell?_) swooped around the bend, one of which closed its maw around his waist and flew off into the distance. The quartet gaped. Climbing down the tower was definitely not an option.

"G-guess we can't climb down the side..." Leorio stuttered, his gaze still chasing the flying monsters.

Kurapika had to agree. "Yeah."

Kyu stopped pouting and put her hands on her hips. "Like I was _trying _to say, we were told to reach the base of the tower, therefore-"

"-therefore the aim is not so simple as reaching the bottom, but working our way _through _the tower... I see."

Kyu growled softly again. She knew Kurapika was only inputting what he made of the situation, but seriously; was it necessary for her to get interrupted?

* * *

><p>"Kurapika! Leorio! Kyu!"<p>

Kurapika hurried over to his two friends. "What is it, Gon?"

The boy looked around. "Where's Kyu?"

At this point, the other three boys searched briefly for the missing girl; or as far as they were concerned, boy. The Kurta had been certain she was right behind Leorio and himself. But she was nowhere to be found.

* * *

><p>Kyu woke up to find something round and bright reflecting light into her eyes. <em>Moon...?<em>

Then she felt the world shaking. No- she was the one shaking. Apart from the loud ringing in her head, she could faintly hear something, someone...

"WAKE UP!"

"Urrgh... I wanna puke... Stop shaking me..." The shaking stopped. Kyu clambered to her feet, coming face to face with with a bald guy wearing silly shoulder pads. Actually, it was more like a face-to-chest scenario since Kyu was so short. The girl frowned. The last thing she hearing was Gon calling for the three of them to come to him when...

_That's right! I stepped on a tile and it gave way under my feet... and as I tried to jump out back out it bopped me on the back of the head..._

_Idiot! You're so clumsy you can't even dodge a tile!_

_Shaddup. My training never included tile-dodging!_

"KID! HEY KID!"

Kyu covered her ears. This man was LOUD. "Jesus! What do you want?"

"What do I want? What do I want?! I want you to haul your lazy ass over to that table and put on that bracelet so we can actually pass the exam! You've been asleep for over two hours!"

_Two hours...? _"It's called being unconscious, dumbass. Are you going to pop a vein or are you going to put that bracelet on?"

The baldie gnashed his teeth together and joined her at the table.

"...These aren't bracelets. They're f*cking manacles..."

"Just put them on and keep up with me little boy."

"..." _I need to draw 'NOT A BOY' on my shirt somewhere. _"Ok. By the way, you are...?"

"Hanzo. I'm a ninja."

"...If you tell me you're a ninja, doesn't that just ruin the point of being a ninja? 'Cus you're meant to 'keep to the shadows' and all?"

"I'm a ninja."

"Ok then."

Kyu tested the links of metal tying her wrist to his. 1 metre of steel chain held the girl and her bald ninja partner together. She wouldn't even need to use her ability to break free. However, Kyu wanted to keep a low profile. There were undoubtedly cameras recording the footage in this tower, and people watching the video feed. She wanted to appear as harmless as possible to let any unwanted attention stray away from her.

**"You may now begin the path of darkness."**

A section of the brick wall slid up, revealing a dark passage.

"..."

Hanzo tugged at the chain. "Hurry up kiddo. We don't have all day."

"You know, when he said path of darkness, I didn't expect him to be so... literal."

"What did you expect? Come on! If I lose first place I'm blaming you! I forgot to mention, when we get to the base of the tower, you're going to let me pass first."

"Sure?"

The bald head bobbed. "Let's go!"

Kyu let him lead them down the tunnel, dully noting how the path was gradually widening. She could see well enough, especially since there were glowing blue markers every few metres to indicate where they needed to go. Hanzo wasn't faring too badly either. Until they reached the end of the tunnel.

"Watch out for-"

"Oof!"

"-that door..."

"Tell me earlier kid!"

Kyu sighed and squinted to make out the text carved into the metal plating. "Hm. There's a 'lil riddle on here that basically asks how many of those blue things we walked past."

Hanzo moved forward to feel the words out for himself. He groaned after he'd read the paragraph. "Go back and count _every single light_? It took us 3 hours just to get down here, how long will it take for us to stop and count each one?!"

"No need."

"What did you say?"

"287. I memorised the path on our descent. Ironically, it's the same number as this exam, the 287th Hunter Exam."

"...Wow. You're not as stupid as I thought."

"I'm just going to pretend I didn't hear that and punch the numbers into this keypad."

_Keypad? What keypad? _The ninja wondered.

_Beep-beep, beep. _The heavy metal door swung open as she lifted her finger from the number 7. Behind it stood... another iron door.

The girl grumbled and read the text on this one too.

"I am always around, but never seen. I am often avoided, but you can't out run me. for I will come when your old and grey, or maybe even the very next day. I will come with cold embrace, and give you rest with a chilled kiss on your face. I come in many forms of emotional state, weather it's irony, love, laughter, or hate. I am everyone's final fate."

This time Hanzo wasn't bothered to read it himself. "That's easy. The answer's 'death'."

"Mhm."

"...So why isn't the door opening?"

"Because that's not the end of the riddle. We need to head back to the start of the tunnel."

"What?!"

"Death. It has the same pronunciation as the number 4 in Chinese- or at least in one of the main dialects. The answer to this question lies at the fourth marker from the start."

"Lords of the shinobi... Retracing our steps will take forever!"

"Well shut up and start running!"

* * *

><p>Exactly 2 hours and 54 minutes later, they arrived back at the glowing blue light. Kyu could see the perspiration glinting dimly on his head.<p>

_What sort of crappy ninja sweats after sprinting a few hundred metres?_

_This sort of crappy ninja apparantly. His shoulder pads are stupid too. _

Hanzo caught the girl guilty of giving him an unimpressed '_tsk' _and gave her a glower. Kyu almost stuck her tongue out, but decided against acting like a 5-year-old. She touched the light, then pressed down hard.

Nothing happened.

"...Uh?"

It was Hanzo's turn to give her the 'not impressed' look as he tried messing with the tiny dot of blue himself. Next he took a step back, and tossed a shuriken at the unfortunate marker. The shuriken embedded itself into the light; dead centre.

_Crack._ The marker turned out to be some sort of luminous stone. Or a was-stone. Now it was a few fragments of stone with a huge metal throwing star sticking out of it.

"..."

"..."

"So was that supposed to do something or were you just showing off your shuriken?"

"That's strange. Something awesome usually happens after I do my Super Awesome Secret Ninja Shuriken Technique..."

_And I thought samurai were bad... _"Ugh, look. Why don't we go check the door to see if it's opened or not? Maybe your Weird-As-Not-so-secret-technique did shit."

"Ok. Wait what did you-"

"Once again, you can either stand there and ask questions or you can hurry the hell up and pass this exam quickly. Your choice."

"...I really don't like smartass little kids."

"And I don't like bald dudes who claim to be ninjas."

"I'm glad we have an understanding."

Kyu hid a smile.

But it wasn't the only thing she hid as she clenched her hand around a small object.

* * *

><p>When they were back at the door, another 3 hours had passed. To Hanzo's utter disappointment, the second iron door was still sealed tightly shut, and showed no signs of opening. The man resorted to screaming obscenities at the door in hopes that it would bend under his relentless onslaught. Kyu watched in amusement, fingering the small key she'd found in the dent on the opposite wall of the fourth marker. Hanzo had been so busy using his 'Super Awesome Secret Ninja Shuriken Technique' the man hadn't noticed her pick the small piece of metal up along with the blue orb she'd snatched from the wall. It was more accurate to say she'd crushed the stone around the stone to ease it from the wall. It was a pretty blue thing. Straight into her back-pouch of useless keepsakes it went.<p>

_Heh. Ima see how much spit he can land on that door before I point out I have the key. With any luck, the door might rust with all that moisture flying from his lips._

_I agree. We should observe._

_Maybe if I rip out his throat it'll rust quicker. Heehee~  
><em>

_Where's the logic behind that?_

"YOU USELESS PIECE OF IRON!"

"STUPID SON OF A WOODEN TRAPDOOR CAN'T EVEN OPEN!"

"# ($*$!($ JELLYFISH BUTTER!"

Kyu laughed without restraint. Jellyfish butter? She _needed _to record this on her phone. As she fumbled to get her phone recording, Kyu dropped the key because she was trembling so much.

***BEEP***

The small piece of metal activated the sensor on the door, and it slid up. Kyu hurriedly stooped to pick it up, feigning innocence. To her relief, the bald ninja didn't turn around and instead shouted,

"It worked!"

"...Yup. It worked."

His chest puffed up proudly. "All that stupid hunk of metal needed was some encouragement!"

Kyu facepalmed and said, "Look, let's just finish this phase okay? And if you come across any more iron doors I'll let you holler your 'encouragements' until it opens. Deal?"

"Just stay behind me kiddo. I got this."

The man dragged the girl along behind him, stepping into a room devoid of any markers. Intuition forced Hanzo stop, lifting an arm to stop Kyu from taking another step.

"I sense traps."

He inched carefully forward, gesturing for Kyu to follow. Kyu rolled her eyes. _This idiot. He does realise in utter darkness even I can't see? Pupils require even the smallest slivers of light to refract an viewable image... Unless he was gesturing knowing I could feel the chains move._

Step by step, Kyu let him lead her through the suffocating black. When Hanzo backtracked for the fifth time, Kyu finally got annoyed enough to bring out her flint and steel.

_SchhKK! _Kyu memorised the room during the bright spark of light. There were many traps. Too many traps to get past at this snail-like speed. She tapped her partner on the shoulder.

"Hey Hanzo, get on my back," She suggested. No reply. Kyu sighed again. She was fairly sure he was giving her another strange expression which she obviously could not see. "We can travel faster if you do."

"My pride as a shinobi dictates that I am to carry my own weight."

"Get on."

"I'm not going to let some kiddo help me pass the Hunter Exam."

"Get on."

"You can't even-"

"Get. On."

Grumbles. Then a shuffling of clothes to her right. He clambered awkwardly on her back, then they were off. Breaks were taken every now and then for Kyu to strike a spark. After another 3 hours they came to a gate, this time torches lit the hallway on the other side.

Hanzo hopped off her shoulders, grateful they'd finally reached a part of the tower he could finally see in.

_Clink. Clink. _Kyu tilted her ear towards the noise. She could hear them better now; two people, both males. Their movement sounded restricted, possibly chains not unlike her and her companion's binding them. They were barefoot and stepped far too heavily to be skilled fighters. Well, they weren't in her league, but the ninja...

"Say Hanzo, you're a ninja right?"

"?"

"Better put those assassin skills to use bro. We have company."

The atmosphere changed from pleasant to a cold serious, and suddenly the man standing before Kyu didn't look so easygoing anymore. His frigid stance radiated many years of hard training and a well toned body built to kill. Hanzo's voice was reduced to a deadly whisper.

"Stay out of my way, kid. I won't be needing your help again."

Kyu effectively ruined the mood by rattling the chain attached to her wrist. "Ahem."

"Oh."

"Yeah..."

The gate creaked open. Kyu frowned. _To think that this huge tower, built by someone clearly in possession of no insubstantial amount of money, can't afford to oil the hinges on their damned gate. Sad._

Two prisoners stepped forth, both clad in brown rags. Their manacles dropped with a slight hiss and fell to the ground, as the prisoners ripped off their cloaks. They were almost physically identical; twins. Their only difference was the disproportionately bulging left arm on the first prisoner and the bulging right arm on the second.

_Freakish. They look like an experiment gone wrong with steroids. No doubt those mutated arms of theirs give them extra strength._

_Hmm yes. We'll avoid them, no problem. Hanzo... good luck to him._

" 'Ow long since we 'ad some fun, Teraphel?"

"I 'aven't the foggiest Soraphel. And they send us them small fries, shame, shame. Lippo's underestimating us Ferryman twins."

"Aye. Give them 'ell."

Teraphel charged at Kyu while Soraphel leapt at Hanzo. Kyu felt a tug on the chain, and left towards Hanzo. She watched as a hidden blade extended from his bandages and slit the monstrous prisoner's throat. He was skilled, she'd give him that much. The second prisoner met the same fate not 2 seconds later. Hanzo swung his blade to rid it of the red fluid.

Kyu whistled at the sight of his handiwork. Cleanly sliced through the spinal cord, more efficient for killing than slashing through the windpipe. This was what separated professionals from the newbies.

"Not bad buddy. You're now my favourite ninja."

Hanzo gave her a dashing smile. "I _am _the best of my class."

_Ssss... _Their own handcuffs released, signalling the end of their partnership.

"Like I promised," Kyu nodded at the open gates, "you go first. I'll wait an extra minute or so."

"See you later kiddo. You know, you're not so bad yourself."

Kyu watched him leave. Having nothing else to do, she searched the room for any prizes she could add to her collection. While she fiddled with some vines growing on the wall of the room, Kyu pondered the possibility of Gon and the others already at the end, waiting. Instead of speculating, she _could _punch through some walls and search for them, but why ruin the fun? They were probably breezing through this phase.

Her minute was up. The girl stretched and yawned before heading to the exit. For the next two days or so she'd need to wait for the other examinees to pass.

_Oh, the joy._


	5. Chapter 5

**And that moment I realise I didn't upload the full version of this chapter. Well, enjoy the extra 2000 or so words :D**

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"Uh... Raise."

"Oh~?"

A wave of goosebumps ran up her neck. Shutting out the clown's annoying voice, the girl glared at the cards she was holding.

_Queen of hearts, jack of hearts, queen of diamonds, nine of hearts, ace of spades... Crap._

_Why the hell did you call raise? You're gonna lose 10,000 jenny..._

_Shaddup and let me play!_

_Sweating and tensing of the muscles is a clear indication of-_

_SHUT UP!_

Illumi didn't bat an eyelid. "Call."

Hisoka said "Call."

_Gulp. _10,000 jenny waved goodbye to her purse. Kyu pulled the queen of diamonds and ace of spades from her hand and drew two new cards. Her face dropped in disappointment as she saw what she drew.

"Aw..." A king of hearts and an ace of hearts. A flush, but one number away from a straight flush.

_You suck balls at poker; really, you do._

_Mhm._

_FINE! Pokerface, you play._

"Raise."

_I SAID PLAY, NOT F**KING LOSE ANOTHER 10,000 JENNY!_

"Call."

"Call~"

_They're not buying your stupid bluff. Jesus, I'm taking my seat back._

The three players revealed their cards; Kyu with her flush, and...

"...Wow. Two straight flushes? I call cheat!"

"Wrong game, Kyu-kun~"

Another fresh serving of goosebumps. _This bloody weirdo... the sooner this phase ends, the better. And to think a Magic-user would know the difference between a dude and dudette..._

Illumi split his and Hisoka's winnings evenly with no emotion while Hisoka chuckled and tossed his share of the 20,000 jenny into the air, the bundle of notes disappearing before they dropped back in his finely manicured hand.

Losing did not come easily to Kyu. In fact, she hated losing games more than she hated losing battles. _Especially _when she played against Kuroro. The one game she hated to play- chess. Chess was the universe's way of saying 'Fuck you' to Kyu; she hated turn based games with every fiber of her being. Even Pokemon battles with Phinks got boring after a 30 game winning streak, her way.

"Stupid cross-head and his stupid ungodly talent for chess..." grumbled the girl as she scratched lines into the sandstone walls with her nails. She stopped when the sand collected under the grooves of her nails. If Kyu chose one word to describe the Hunter Exam, _'boring' _would be first choice.

_The only reason I'm even here is for the damned license, because reaching into pockets on the street is... yuck- I don't even want to remember. But still, I've met some pretty cool peeps. Speaking of cool peeps... I wonder how those four peeps are doing? The hell's taking them so long?_

_I wonder if the old dude is dead?_

* * *

><p>"A-a-achoo!"<p>

"Bless you Leorio!"

"Man, thanks Gon. It's like someone was gossiping behind my back... But if it was a pretty lady talking about the great Leorio-sama I wouldn't mind at all! Hahaha!"

Killua sweatdropped. _Who the heck would want to talk about you, old man..._

"Look- there's something further away," said Kurapika.

* * *

><p><em>Eh. He's probs D-E-D. Who cares?<em>

* * *

><p>"Achoo!"<p>

"Bless you Leorio!"

"Y-yeah, thanks Gon."

* * *

><p><em>Even if he didn't get squished by some trap in the tower, he'll probably die of old age before he can get down here. He's slower than Feitan trying to read a street directory...<em>

* * *

><p>"A-ACHOO!"<p>

"Bless you Leo-"

"I GET IT GON!"

"Oi!" Kurapika and Killua gave him dirty glares. "Don't be rude."

Even Tonpa tutted at the man's unseemly behaviour.

Leorio blushed and muttered his apologies.

* * *

><p><em>Oh well. Just a few more hours of fun filled waiting, yay! Such fun, much happy, wow... clowns. Who the fuck am I kidding, waiting another 55 hours sucks!<em>

_Candycane?_

_I'd love a candycane. Only I don't have any at the moment and I can't exactly use my ability right now..._

_Why not?_

_Cus the room's filled with people, dipshit. Duh. _And _there are cameras set up around this stupid dusty basement of a tower base._

"Round two, Kyu?" A monotonous voice broke into her mental argument. Illumi shuffled the cards (so generously provided by Hisoka) expertly, the soft _pap_ing of plastic against plastic echoing through the relatively empty chamber.

"Nah, I'm broke. Hanzo, you interested in a game?" No answer. The bald ninja appeared to be meditating. "Just you two then. Cheat to your heart's content. I don't give a hoot."

"Ne, Kyu-kun, you did pretty well for a beginner~"

"Hmph. Not well enough seeing that I lost 20,000 jenny."

"Mmm, fair point."

More sulking. Could she be less of a sore loser and relieve her boredom at the cost of a few hundred thousand jenny? Maybe if her opponents weren't the robotic eldest son of the Zoldyck and his arguably psychotic partner, then yes, maybe.

_Not giving that rich bastard any more cash if it kills me... I mean seriously, he charges millions for a puny assassination! What about the rest of us in the industry? Few hundred thousand at the most?_

_That creepy dude- Hisoka was it?- is probably filthy rich too. I swear, every psycho in this world is a millionaire. Put him, Kuroro-san, Illumi, and the Spiders together and you'll have half the world's fortune._

"Selfish, stingy asshat frogs... all of them..."

"Who are you referring to?"

Kyu blinked. She hadn't realised she'd said that out loud. "It's not a _who_ I'm referring to, it's a _what. _You know, the _asshaticus __caerulea. _Those 'lil guys are adorable but seriously selfish when it comes to feeding time. I have a tank of 'em at home."

"..."

"I ain't kidding dude."

"..."

"Ok now it's just getting creepy. Please stop staring at me. By the way, Hisoka's cheating." His blank gaze finally shifted away from her. She was fairly sure he didn't believe a word she just said.

Kyu sighed and lay down. Thinking back, maybe she should have taken Shalnark's advice to bring a gaming device. Wait... she did have a gaming device!

...But it was sitting on her table in the Heaven's Arena, where she'd left it after arriving at the tower. The girl snuck a hand behind her back and fumbled blindly through the portal for the sleep piece of plastic and metal.

_There! Now pretend to casually slide it out of my pocket..._

* * *

><p>A jailer pointed at one of the many screens Lippo was sitting in front of. "That kid. He's looking around like he just stole something."<p>

_Crunch. _"Hm yes."

"Now he glancin' 'round like he planted a bomb or some shit. A troublemaker, through an' through."

_Crunch. _"Hn." _And a Nen-user by the looks of it, _Lippo hadn't missed the shimmer of Nen behind her back as he reached for a chip.

* * *

><p><em>Hue. I'm so damn good at this, I bet not one person noticed my smooth moves. <em>She thought as she unlocked her phone screen. _Aw._

The reception bar was at zero. Zilch. Dead and gone. Which meant no internet and no internet games.

Kyu's shoulders visibly slumped. She was done- so very, very done with this stupid exam. What sort of bullshit facility didn't have wifi?

_Dude. This is a prison._

_So? Doesn't mean they should deprive their poor captives of wifi._

_Mate, which part of 'prison' do you not understand?  
><em>

_Hehe~ the 'prison' part, dumbass._

Humming 'Let it go' quietly to herself, Kyu let the argument go on in her head, glad that there was at least something to keep her entertained. Three hours later, Kyu gave up and injected herself with spare anesthesia she found in her cupboard back at the Arena. She ignored the bewildered stares from the other participants and jabbed the syringe into her thigh, then drifted happily into a drug-induced slumber.

* * *

><p>Kyu woke up, and the world danced a happy dance to welcome her back. Well, at least it looked like the world was dancing to her. As far as she was concerned, everyone and everything was reaching the climax of 'Swan lake' and pirouetting like ballerinas.<p>

Kyu groaned and remained horizontal on the now sweaty patch of ground. _So... totally worth... fifty something hours... brain too dead to calculate._

The grating of stone on stone almost made the girl nauseous enough to puke. She rubbed her eyes and though, _Who the heck is this? There's 1 bloody minute till the end of this phase. Oh god, why are my fingers bending so weirdly?_

_You're hallucinating, dumbshit._

_Ah._

The girl squinted at the opening door. Was that who she thought it was...?

**"Kurapika, applicant #404, is the twentieth to pass. Killua, applicant #99, is the twenty-first to pass. Gon, applicant #405, is the twenty-second to past. Total time, seventy-one hours and fifty-nine minutes."**

"My butt hurts..." whined an all too familiar white-haired brat.

Kyu jumped up immediately and ran over to the trio, accidentally kicking a woman holding a sniper rifle in the process. The woman didn't make a big deal about it.

Killua turned to Gon and said, "I didn't expect a slide for the short and easy path."

"OI!" hollered the puffy blob of black rushing towards them, "What took you blockheads so damned long?!" _Do you have any idea what I had to sit through...? T.T_

"Hi Kyu!"

"Yeah hi to you too, idiot." She flicked Gon forehead, which was (strangely) red already. "Cutting it pretty close, aren't we? I thought you'd be able to pass this phase like a breeze." _You have the youngest bloody son of the Zoldycks on your team, so how in the actual f**k did you manage to come like last?_

"We were met with some complications on our descent." The Kurta glared daggers at Kyu.

**"Thirty seconds remain."**

"Haha, so you ditched the extra weight?"

A voice echoed down the long dark tunnel. "Who'd you just call extra weight, kid?!"

"Aw. Looks like the old man made it."

"Yeah... I'm surprised he did." Killua laughed, receiving a glare from Leorio, who was trying shove Tonpa away. Gon laughed along with him. Even the stern-faced Kurapika cracked a smile.

**"Leorio, applicant #403, is the twenty-third to pass. Tonpa, applicant #16, is the twenty-fourth to pass. Total time, seventy-one hours and fifty-nine minutes."**

Leorio showed his palms to Kyu. "My hands are blistered, but all five of us cleared the tower together," he boasted proudly. "All thanks to Gon!"

"Ehehe!"

Kyu wasn't too curious as to how they'd all managed to blister their hands. "Hmph. At least you did clear the tower..."

"Wanna pick a fight, kid?!"

"Oh I'm sooo~ scared!"

Gon scanned Kyu from head to toe. "Are you ok? You're so pale. Did you have trouble too?"

"Huh? Oh. Nah, I used some meds to help me past the time." Upon seeing the two older teenagers' suspicious frowns, Kyu laughed, "They weren't illegal drugs, I promise!"

***Beep* "The Third Phase of the exam is over. Twenty-five applicants have passed. One has died.**

The stone panel furthest from them slid slowly upwards; glaring rays of midday sun seeped through the opening.

"ARGH! THE SUN, IT BURNS!" Kyu covered her aching eyes and arched her back, hissing in pain. Everyone else gave her the 'really?' face.

* * *

><p>When Kyu recovered from her over dramatic reaction to sunlight, she was alone. Again. She could hear Lippo's voice outside the tower. Fantastic. They hadn't ditched her after all.<p>

She joined the crowd in time to hear:

"-in the order by which you exited the tower. Will the first person come forward?"

_Oh shit. What? That ain't me, right?_

Hisoka passed through the crowd and stopped in front of a small black box decorated with four yellow arrows. His hand dipped into the hole, withdrawing a palm sized card. Illumi (or Gittarackur, for he was still disguised as a pin-cushion) went next, followed by Hanzo.

...

...

"Ahem. Next please?" Lippo tilted his head pointedly at Kyu.

"Oh." The girl rushed forward and drew her card, red already tinging her ears. She watched as the other applicants drew theirs in turn.

"Everyone's taken a card? Then, remove the seal from your card."

_The seal? _Kyu noticed a little flap on the white side of her card. _Must be this. 80?_

"The card indicates your target."

_Who the shit is 80?_

* * *

><p>Before Kyu could find her target among the 23 other people gathered, a woman rounded the applicants up and hurried them onto a boat. The fourth phase was a game of cat and mouse on Zevil Island. In other words, a game of hunter and prey. Kyu's favourite.<p>

But then the guide told them the trip would take two hours and Kyu's spirits plummeted. More waiting. Whoop-di-doo!

"You're not my target either!" Her ear twitched. God, couldn't Leorio be quiet? Though she was quite happy they wouldn't be hunting each other. She wouldn't want to see any unnecessary drama. She listened for any other juicy pieces of information and heard a voice several moments later.

"...#44 is..." _Heh. Which unlucky bastard got Hisoka? _"You have really bad luck..."

_Wait. Is that...?__ That's Killua. And there's only one peep who he'd talk to. And it ain't his brother. Holy crap! What if either Hisoka or Illumi got me? Fuuuuuu-  
><em>

_Focus. Talk to Gon._

Kyu took a deep breath and tried to stop contemplating how absolutely screwed she was if either Hisoka or Illumi _did _have her as their target. The odds were _not _in her favour. But Gon was the one in deep shit right now, not her. In the two hours it took for the boat to arrive at Zevil Island, Kyu decided that she'd need to keep an eye on the mountain boy through the phase. She wanted to believe in his abilities, she really did. But Hisoka was not someone to be trifled with. Heck, it wasn't safe to be within 5 kilometres of the self appraised 'magician'. Killua and Kurapika she had faith in to look after themselves. Leorio... she could care less.

So when they departed the boat, one by one, Kyu waited in the trees not 10 metres away from the boat and hid her presence. 42 minutes ticked away, the girl's legs growing number with each second. Just when she was about to give up on waiting, she felt Gon's drawing closer to her. She frowned. There was another aura moving too steadily in beat with Gon to be a mere coincidence. He was being tailed.  
><em>No problem. Gon's hunter is following him on foot, so I'll just stay in the trees and be fine. <em>

Gon ran through the forest. Following him was easy enough, only...

The thin layer of leaf litter crunched under his feet and sent spirals of microscopic crushed leaves floating up to Kyu's nose. Ten times she almost sneezed and gave her position away. Ten times she clamped a hand over her mouth and nose, eyeballs nearly popping out from the force of the suppressed sneeze. Kyu sighed in relief when he finally decided to take a break and rest on the branches of a tall tree. His stalker also seemed quite relieved, judging by the exhale of air she heard directly beneath where she was perched. She'd heard the poor guy holding back a few sneezes too. How the crumbly, dry leaf litter had no effect on Gon she had no idea.

Minutes flew by. Gon showed no intention of moving. Kyu couldn't help but think how vulnerable he was, lying down like that. There were two- _two -_people tailing him and he didn't even notice. He did, however, notice the other two applicants passing below him. Kyu smiled. This was so damn ironic. The hunters were being hunted by hunters who in turn were hunted themselves. Oh, and the five people watching them afar. Probably examiners keeping tabs on them. Kyu tutted silently. If the Hunter association was going to send people to watch their applicants, they should have at the very least sent people who were _half_ decent at Zetsu.

_Phweet!_

An arrow loosed itself from the smaller participant's bow. Applicant #105 dodged the arrow as soon as he felt the archer's killing intent, but was not able to fully avoid the projectile.

_Hmph. It's over for him. Any smart archer would coat their arrow-tips with poison. _Thought the girl. Moments later, she watched the man collapse. The archer claimed his tag and left the tall grass for the trees. Kyu could have stolen his plate the second he fired his arrow, but she preferred to stay unnoticed by Gon until he'd acquired Hisoka's plate. She had the feeling that if he knew she was secretly helping him, he'd protest and ask her to stop.

Kyu heard a sharp inhalation. Gon had reached some sort of revelation after observing Pokkle hunt. She watched him pick up his fishing rod and move off to practice swinging at still targets. She kept her 'helpful' stalking persistent for the rest of the day and the next morning, going as far as staying up during the night to make sure no-one targeted Gon whilst he slept. Kinda creepy, if you were to consider it.

It wasn't until Gon finally caught a bird with his rod that Kyu realised how hungry she was. God, she was starving. Thinking back, she hadn't eaten for 3 or 4 days. The last meal she'd eaten was aboard the airship on their way to Trick Tower. Breakfast or Gon? That was the question. Although she was leaning towards breakfast. The other man following Gon had disappeared too; for breakfast no doubt.

Breakfast it was then. Taking one last look at Gon tying butterflies to his fingers, Kyu went away in search of any mushrooms that would go well in those Spider Eagle eggs she'd saved up from days ago. One omelet later Kyu found the boy crouched in the bushes, fear seeping from his every pore. Kyu noted how he was shaking and sweating, then came to the conclusion that the person sitting 20 metres away was the magician of death himself. The unmistakable smell of strawberries blew by with the breeze. She was right.

_Gon... stop being afraid. He'll sense your fear if he hasn't already._

Amazingly, Gon relaxed his body and unconsciously immersed himself in Zetsu. Kyu was impressed by his ability to remain calm under so much pressure, but it wasn't enough. His Zetsu wasn't perfect. And if it wasn't perfect, then Hisoka would surely sense him. Kyu had two choices. Either see how their encounter would play out- most likely ending with the boy's death- or intervene at the risk of her own life.

She chose the latter.

Kyu pushed her aura into a flare of Ren; just strong enough to attract his attention, but not pose any threat. Hisoka's head dipped by a fraction. He had his attention on her, and she intended to keep it that way. It was difficult for Kyu to hold Ren. It just felt... awkward, letting her aura leak out like that. It made her feel exposed.

* * *

><p>The sun dipped below the canopy of the forest. Shadows of orange and purple dyed the landscape, alienating what had been a lush green forest earlier in the day. Gon and Kyu were still crouched in their respective hiding places- one in the bushes and one in the tree above. Kyu had begun to think Hisoka was asleep against the tree when suddenly-<p>

"Well, come on out."

Her heart missed a beat. _Shitshitshitshit-_

"I know you're there." _Of course you know I'm f**king here! I made it pretty damned obvious!_

Hisoka stood, with all the grace of a predatory feline. He continued to speak. "If you won't come out, I'll come to you." These words, if spoken by any other, were a gentle lull to coax children from their hiding places. Only when Hisoka said them they seemed to promise something along the lines of rape.

And hell, he was coming their way too. She could hear Gon's breathing speeding up like a rabbit's. Would it be heroic of her to throw herself out of the tree in an act of martyrdom? Quite. Would it be wise? Hell no. She was staying right where she crouched.

Leaves rustled.

_?!_

Another man had somehow arrived without her knowing. Not that she was going to complain. Better his lifeless corpse than hers. She could _smell _the rusty reek of blood on him. He was hurt and concealing his wounds well.

"I challenge you to a duel." He rasped in a deep, guttural voice.

Hisoka smiled. "You'll die." By the tone of his voice, Kyu could tell the magician knew what wounds his opponent was afflicted with.

The challenger broke into a fighting stance, then charged at the grinning redhead.

"Ogh!" A strong thrust, followed by another at the neck and chest. Hisoka dodged an alternating pattern of jabs, swings and thrusts, none of which came close to hitting. Watching this one-sided fight was almost sad.

The skirmish ended when his spear sliced through the tree Hisoka had been sitting against. "Hisoka..." choked out the man between labored gasps, "explain yourself... Why won't you attack me?!"

The answer was obvious, but the red-haired magician spared the breath to explain anyway. "If I continue to avoid your attacks, you'll die eventually. I can tell from the swarm of Hemotropic butterflies that your wounds are grave." Hisoka paused as the man fell to his knees. "Someone else has already dealt you a fatal blow, yes? Though I do understand your desire to die in battle."

"If you... if you understand so well, why do you still refuse to fight me?!"

Hisoka sighed. "I have no interest in the dead."

"What? I'm not-"

"You're already dead." Those amber eyes reduced to slits in disdain. "It's in your eyes."

The challenger's expression settled somewhere between fear and despair as Hisoka took a seat on the fallen tree. "Bye-bye."

_How pathetic... _Thought Kyu, _I'd hate to be so weak..._ She watched as the dying man made one last ditch effort to take down Hisoka with him. He roared and ran wildly at the magician, but failed to reach him as a round-headed needle buried itself into his throat. Illumi's needle. Another six followed shortly after. He died without a sound. Kyu watched Illumi emerge from the shrubbery and talk with Hisoka. She saw the assassin hand over a tag to him. Number 80.

_F**k. That's my target. Welp, now I'm gonna have to hunt another three losers down..._

"Kyu. You can come out now."

_Holy banana pooping sh*t muffins-_

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**One word. School. Updates are gonna slow guys, sorry D:**


	6. Chapter 6

**9 days. That's how long it took for me to type this chapter up after I first created the document. The writing block is amazeballs.  
><strong>

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Kyu reluctantly climbed down from her 'safe tree', purposely slowing her actions. That was until she was yanked unceremoniously towards the two men, landing face-first in the dirt.

"Phbbbbt! What the hell?!" yelled Kyu, spitting dirt. "Who-" She caught a certain red-haired magician's smirk. "Oh. _You._" She used Gyo to see just how exactly he'd managed to send her flying out of thin air. She saw nothing. Short temper got the better of her wariness.

Growls rumbled in the girl's chest. "I don't know what you did, but you'd better have a darned good reason for doing that shit, Hisoka."

"Oh~? Do I?"

Illumi wasn't amused. But then again; he never was."You should be the one with a good reason Kyu. Either you're losing your touch, or you're purposely trying to pick a fight."

"Eh..." So he _had _noticed. And he had a point. "I suppose it's my fault... well, what can I do for you _good sirs_?"

"First rub that smirk off your face."

"...Fine."

"Prepare a meal."

Kyu raised an eyebrow. "Really? Couldn't you have done it yourself? And since when did _you _like my cooking? You said, and I quote, 'tastes like cardboard dipped in sawdust sauce'."

"Everything tastes like cardboard to me."

"...You must have some pretty fucked up taste buds mate." The girl turned to the other man. "Are you gonna pitch in on a free meal too? Or are you gonna make your pork souffles again?"

Hisoka shrugged, still smiling. "Well ok then. But I ain't cookin' anythin' sweet, got it? Won't take too long."

* * *

><p>Half an hour later she was back, carrying three steaming plates of Spider Eagle egg and Great Stamp bacon omelets. Only to find <em>one <em>person waiting for the food.

"...Where did Illumi go?"

Hisoka motioned to the ground, where there appeared to be a fresh pile of dirt.

Kyu sighed. "His loss." To the magician she handed him his omelet, set the second plate aside, then began to eat the last one herself. The bacon bits were pre-friend, providing a crunchy variation in the silky texture of the omelet.

_Yum! This tastes amazing!__ I really might consider taking on Menchi's offer... Gourmet Hunter seems like the right job for me. Aside from assassin, doctor, thief and apprentice torturer. Heh.  
><em>

_Wow, listen to Miss arrogant asshole pat herself on the back._

_A bit of self praise wouldn't hurt for once..._

"Mm."

?

Was that... a contented sigh she'd heard? A glance a Hisoka told her nothing. The red-head was unreadable. His plate, however, was cleaner than Shizuku's mind. Kyu raised an eyebrow, but kept her mouth shut. The uneaten plate of omelet lay between them. A plate she wasn't particularly interested in eating. She did instead want to give it to Gon, who hadn't eaten for a day.

But...

It was getting really unnerving. She could _feel _his amber eyes pressed on her even as she mowed through her omelet. His intentions couldn't be more clear.

_Gon... I am so damn sorry, but my butt takes priority over your stomach.  
><em>

Kyu forked over the second plate of omelet reluctantly. _I hope you choke on it you greedy asshole._

Sadly (for Kyu, and fortunately for the plot), Hisoka did not choke on the omelet. Dinner, overall, was uneventful. The orange-gold of sunset transitioned to dark indigo and fading black. It was time for Kyu to begin her own search for number plates; but first...

"...Ne. Hisoka."

"Hm~?"

One look at his generously applied make-up was enough to discourage Kyu from asking for her target number plate.

"Uh... I'm leaving! Bye!"

"Bye-bye~"

A wise but cowardly decision. And the voices let no part of that be unknown.

_BOK BOK BOK BOK!_

_I've always thought that I shared a body with a human, not a giant feathery egg-beast._

_...I'm sticking my hypothetical finger up at you right now. See? .,l,,_

_You mean your hypothetical_ claw_. Right Fluffles?_

_Fluffles... he was a good chicken-goat. Bit smelly, but the best friend any 4-year-old could have hoped for._

_Hehehe~ I bet he tasted nice!_

_Oi! That ain't nice! Don't you dare mock Fluffles!_

_.,l,,_

_Hey, do you hear that?_

_No?_

_That's 'cus it's the call of insa~nity! Hahahah! Sucker!_

_...Somehow I'm really glad._

_Check out who we found~_

"-figured out who my target is," Kyu heard the voice of a middle aged man say, "but how am I supposed to find her on this huge island? Isn't walking around aimlessly a waste of energy?"

Leorio walked into her line of sight, following closely behind an annoyed blonde.

"Constantly whining would be an even bigger waste of energy." Retorted Kurapika.

"I wholeheartedly agree."

Leorio instantly whipped out his knife. "Who is it?!"

"Relax." Kyu stepped out from the shadows and grinned. "Just little old me. Do you happen to be 'finding' me?"

Leorio did relax. But it was Kurapika who answered her question. "No. Leorio specifically mentioned 'she'."

The girl bit her lip hard. Part of her wanted to correct Kurapika's mistake, but part of her also wanted to see where this mistake would lead them. So instead Kyu just held in her laughter and-

Her eyes muttered a quiet 'damn it' and disappeared before the startled duo's eyes.

Leorio blinked. "Where'd she go?"

"D-don't know." Kurapika replied. He wondered what could have set the child off in such a hurry. _An enemy? _Possible, but then again it may be nothing...

He wasn't listening when Leorio complained about finding his target. Nor was he listening when he started bitching about how the blonde had already acquired his target's plate. Kurapika was too busy listening to the thud of his heart as the person he hoped they wouldn't encounter in this stage appeared before them, leaning casually on a tree trunk.

* * *

><p>Kyu watched from above. As always, the observer.<p>

_That was harsh._

_Yeah... I kinda feel bad for ditching them. _

_Every man for himself!_

_...I'm not a man. But yes. Good luck to those two. Hopefully blondie can hatch up an escape plan in the 0.2 seconds it'll take Hisoka to kill them both._

_Always the optimist, yes?_

_Mhm._

* * *

><p>"Hey."<p>

_Hisoka! _Kurapika and Leorio thought simultaneously.

The magician flicked out a card. Joker. "Imagine meeting you here..."

* * *

><p><em>Bullshit! He came rushing towards them!<br>_

* * *

><p>Leorio laughed nervously. "I keep running into people I don't want to encounter," he muttered hoarsely to himself.<p>

* * *

><p>Kyu shared her pity. <em>I know the feels...<em>

* * *

><p>"You see," Hisoka continued, "I need two more points."<p>

He moved in on the prey. "Could you give me your tags?" That was hardly a question. To Kurapika, it sounded more like a thin attempt to be civil. Unfortunately, Leorio did not share his companion's perceptiveness.

"What was that?! Screw that! I'm not gonna-"

"Leorio!" Kurapika cut him off before Hisoka could. Literally. The next words he directed at their to-be-assailant. "You said that you need two additional points. Which implies that we are not your targets, correct?"

* * *

><p><em>'Atta boy!<br>_

_Woo! Go Blondie!_

* * *

><p>"I'm the one who's asking questions here." Hisoka's patience was wearing thin. "Will you give me the tags or not?"<p>

There was no hesitation in Kurapika's eyes. "That depends."

* * *

><p><em>No you fuckwit! Just give him the bloody tags! Your life is worth more than a few pieces of plastic.<em>

_Shut up, Blondie's got it under control._

_You shut up!_

* * *

><p>"We currently have four tags. Mine, my target's, Leorio's, and a tag worth only a single point to us." Kurapika held up four fingers. "Of these, only two could be the number of your target. Mine, or the tag only worth a single point. Leorio's number is 403. He was the target of number 16, Tonpa. And my target was number 16. Each person was assigned a different target, so number 16 and number 403 are out."<p>

"Indeed..." Hisoka took a step forward. Kurapika found himself involuntarily backing away. "Neither of those is my target. So?"

"That leaves the other two tags. If you're willing to take the tag worth only one point to us and leave, you can have it. But I will not let you have mine. And the same goes for the other two."

The two young men dropped their bags with light _thud_s.

"If you insist on taking them by force," Kurapika poised his bokken swords, as Leorio flicked out his knife, "you'll have to fight me!"

Seconds ticked by. The two sides held each others' gaze in an intense staredown, which, in Kyu's opinion was only Hisoka toying with their courage. His killing intent had evaporated the moment the Kurta put forward his proposal.

Obviously the other three (yes, she did notice the boy behind the tree) didn't. And when Hisoka broke the silence by laughing like the deranged killer he was, Kyu could smell Gon's sweat.

"Out of curiousity, what is your number?"

Kurapika wisely chose not to deny him this piece of information. "Number 404."

The Joker card flipped, disappeared back into his wristband. "Very well. You have a deal. I'll only take the one tag."

Kyu felt a swell of admiration for the older boy. His level-headed bargaining saved their lives. Not to mention the fact that he'd managed to manipulate the situation into the most favourable scenario for himself and Leorio.

_Hats down to you, Kurapika. Good luck for the rest of this Phase._

* * *

><p>Kyu hadn't gotten far before she felt <span>that<span>.

Birds screamed as they were evicted from their nests by a huge wave of bloodlust.

_What is this-_

Every breath she took shuddered with fear.

Fear?

Twigs crunched beneath her boots. Kyu stumbled, regained her balance. Her nails became cruel, pointed talons against her will. The shivering was getting worse.

_How can this be fear-_

The corners of her lips twitched.

_-when it feels so __good__?_

* * *

><p>"Applicant 11 is acting strange. Over."<p>

The man charged with observing the girl noted into his earpiece. But then again, most of these applicants _weren't _normal, otherwise they wouldn't have entered the exam. Wasn't that what the Hunter Exam was? A gathering of freaks? And this particular freak knew, at the very least, the basics of Nen. Needless to say, her constant Zetsu made keeping her bearing difficult. He'd lost her a few times, but she'd never failed to reappear precisely where he'd lost her.

Still. Even in perfect Zetsu, he felt a sense of foreboding.

* * *

><p>The girl's nails left lines of red where they clawed through skin and fabric on her arms. The pain was only a distraction to the adrenaline she felt rushing through her body. Adrenaline that begged to be used. Her own bloodlust was spilling out to counter the one overwhelming her senses. Kyu hunched over, hugging herself.<p>

Strange.

It had gone quiet. It was _never _quiet. There were always voices nagging, chattering away. And that only happened when she administered the serum. As far as she was concerned, she hadn't even touched the stuff for months. According to her fellow 'Troupees', her personality became a bigger asshole than Feitan and Omokage combined.

But then again, it was mostly according to Phinks, Nobunaga and Bonolenov. Okay, maybe Kuroro did say a few things about not using it too often...

What had she been thinking again? Not sure. Lost track. Her mind was going all giddy from the adrenaline. She wondered if this was what it felt like to be **that **one. Kyu was still in full control. And yet she ached to just lose control and find someone, anyone.

_No! I'm not a murderer!_

_..._

_..._

_..._

_Haha... hahaha... Who am I fucking kidding?! Ready or not, here I co~me!  
><em>

* * *

><p>"Applicant 11 is engaging in self-harm. Deduct a few points?"<p>

"_Deduct a few points off who~?_"

_Shit! _The man catapulted away from the tree-top. Then came to a stop in mid-air. He struggled like a fish caught in a net, but he could not free himself from the invisible circle around his waist. Fear built up inside him. He had no idea what sort of ability the girl was using. Which in a battle of Nen meant certain death.

"Let me go, kid!" the man hissed.

Kyu jumped, landed on thin air. Upon closer inspection, a faint ring of blue could be seen under her feet. Kyu pressed her boots on the inside edge of the portal, using it like a platform. She grinned, and in the moonlit night her face seemed to glow deathly white. She'd forgotten how fun it was when she trapped her prey, or when they started with threats. Ah, the threats. By the sound of it, this man was throwing some pretty reasonable ones.

"-disqualified! Do you understand?! Unhand me RIGHT NOW!"

Kyu rubbed her ears. Boy, critters were LOUD.

_Disqualification?_ _Surely you can do better than that..._

"-black listed and-"

_Nope. Last chance! Why don't I... apply some pressure? Heh._

"We can ban you from taking the exam again. Listen to me you stupid-" A gasp of pain cut the rest of his insubstantial threat short. The ring of Nen was tightening. Or rather, two rings. The two shimmering circles were so close to each other they merged into one. Suddenly the man wasn't interested in staying quiet, or even talking at all. His screams pierced the forest of Zevil island as he was slowly crushed into two parts.

* * *

><p>Kurapika stopped.<p>

"Hey, what's up?" asked Leorio, retracing his steps. "Spider bit your leg?"

Ignoring the older man's terrible assumption, Kurapika listened carefully. Nothing, apart from the occasional nocturnal bird call. But the scream he heard a few seconds ago couldn't have been his imagination.

"We should keep moving."

* * *

><p>Kyu grinned from ear to ear. That was <em>fun<em>. Now... who next?

Strawberry? No, she still had a bit of self preservation squashed between her bloodlust. Coconut? Nope. Nope nope nope nope nope nope. A thousand 'nopes'. _ Concentrate. _She thought.

Ah, there they were. 21 pulsing blobs of aura. Or mana, according to the girl. _Hm. Eeni, meeni, miini, moh! Who does that citrus-y aura belong to?  
><em>

Kyu trained her eyes at the aura's source. It was a fair distance away, but she could barely see the point of a purple something bobbing behind a rocky outcrop.

Again she grinned. The hunt was on.

* * *

><p>"So..."<p>

"...Yup."

Killua cocked his eyebrow. "You got done in by the midget with the bow?"

"Hey, I totally scared the living crap out of him though! I was just a bit... cocky. Do you have any idea how cool it looks to catch an arrow with your bare hands while you're jumping at someone from above?."

"No. But it must have looked pretty stupid when you caught the sharp bit and cut yourself. Then you got paralyzed for most of the week."

"...Yeah. Good thing I flew right his head thanks to my momentum, and landed in a ravine thing. And I've still got my number plate."

"Pathetic."

"Which brings me back to my request. May I pleeeeaaase have one of your spare tags? I saw you get two extra off the idiot brothers over there."

"You're the only idiot here!" Imori protested. His brothers echoed in agreement.

"Why should I? Take them off me if you can."

"Uh." said Kyu, scratching her neck. "I know better than to fight you..." _More specifically, I know better than to fight Illumi bloody Zoldyck's precious little brother whom he has a brother complex on. _

_The last time you fought him, you only survived 'cus his employer called him off at the last moment._

_Fighting Illumi is not recommended. It would be smart to avoid any confrontations._

"Ooh. You're not such an idiot after all. Ok then. I'll give you one. If you can catch it."

Killua drew his arm back, baseball-pitcher style. Then turned 180 degrees to fling it into the trees behind him. Kyu let the tag fly out of sight, then disappeared in a flash.

Killua smiled a cheeky smile. "Now, for the tag I don't need..."

He threw the other plate, carefully concealing the number until it left his hand in a rapid spin. He watched as it flew like a boomerang, curving through the canopy. The Amori also watched it go. It was like watching their ticket to free meals, transport and luxuries fly away before their eyes.

Life sucks.

* * *

><p>A white plate, whistling through the air. A black shadow, flitting across the treetops. Another black shadow, slightly less lacking in hair, stalking the first.<p>

The first shadow darted forward, snatching the plate from the air. With a triumphant smirk on his face, the bald ninja tossed the badge up and down, whilst proclaiming how he 'didn't expect that little kid to deal with them for me'.

Then he saw number on the tag.

He fell to his hands and knees in a dramatic display of failure.

"Hehehe." That bald head swung around. Sunshine glinted off the bald dome. Kyu kept giggling, hand covering her smile.

Hanzo glared. "You giggle like a girl."

"Why thank you." Kyu smirked in return. She nodded at the tag pressed under his hand. "And I'm guessing you got the wrong number plate, hm?"

"Yeah? Well maybe I should just take yours and give myself an extra point."

Kyu pretended to think about it, then said, "Or you could spend the next three days looking for the other tag Killua threw- which I'm guessing is your target."

"Or I could-" He noticed the small white object Kyu balanced on her nose like a toy ball. "Hey! My tag!"

Kyu popped the tag on her finger and kept twirling it. "What, this?" she asked nonchalantly. "What do you mean, 'your tag'? It's mine now. Number 294, eh?"

A gust of wind swept the grass in the clearing into frenzied waves. A leaf floated down between the ninja and the assassin, and when it landed, Hanzo was behind her, hidden blade pressing on her jugular.

"Give it back." Hanzo demanded in a flat voice.

"Oh?" He blinked. _Where did she go? _"I didn't say you couldn't have it back, did I?"

Kyu stood where he had been prior to his attack. "As I was saying, why don't we strike a bargain, you and I? Your tag and your target's for the rest of the tags you have. Yes, I know you have three other tags. You should be careful whenever you speak. Never know when you're gonna leak information, man."

Hanzo thought her offer over. Certainly, it seemed to benefit both of them. He'd be at the full 6 points if he made the trade. But the kid pissed him off by stealing his tag (and he still didn't know how), and how was he to know the kid actually had the other target's tag? Kyu could be bluffing, for all he knew.

"No, I'm not bluffing." Hanzo started. Was he that easy to read? "Also, here's your target's tag. 197, am I right?"

"You have yourself a deal, kid." Kyu threw the tags over, and Hanzo did the same.

"My name ain't 'kid', baldie, it's Kyu."

"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!"

* * *

><p>Kyu panted and wheezed. She hadn't expected Hanzo to lose it after she called him 'baldie'. Nor did she expect to be chased around Zevil Island for three days straight. Heck, the only reason he'd stopped was because they'd both heard the ship arriving at the Island and a woman's voice announcing the end of the fourth phase. Kyu was extremely relieved. Because while she'd spent days, weeks even, on stake outs and heists, she'd never had to spend a full three days <em>running. <em>And she had to say, stamina was not her strong suit.

"Han... zo... peace..." she puffed.

The ninja was too busy collapsing on the dirt to answer. Kyu didn't blame him. Her legs felt like jelly too.

It took them almost the full hour to reach the starting point, but they made it in time to hear the woman bleat out the passing numbers.

"Then we will now check the tags of everyone here!"

Everyone held up their tags. Kyu waved tags number 11, 198, 362 and 89. As the announcer called out the final names, Gon, Kurapika and Leorio pushed through the bushes and held up their tags too. They looked a little worse for wear, but they qualified.

When Kyu saw Gon's tags, she gaped. Then she went over and high-fived the green boy.

"Holy crap, you actually did it."

He returned her high-five. "Yeah!"

_Final Phase, here I come! _

_In your face, Shal!_

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**Ok, I don't do this often, but I left a few loose ends to the chapter. If you have any questions, ask away!**


	7. Chapter 7

******I DO NOT OWN HUNTER X HUNTER OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. THAT BELONGS TO NO-LONGER-ON-HIATUS-TOGASHI. HOWEVER KYU DOES BELONG TO ME SO DON'T USE HER WITHOUT MY PERMISSION.******

**You have no idea how awesome it feels to hit exactly 4000 words. EXACTLY 4000. Unless you've actually hit exactly 4000 words before, and I'm just being silly.  
><strong>

**Heck yeah, long chapter! Enjoy!**

****************A note before you start reading, all dialogue that looks like "[This stuff inside here with the weird brackets]" is spoken in Chinese. _Italics _are for thoughts and sound effects.****************

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**"I have an announcement for all applicants."**

Kyu almost jumped off the toilet seat. Damn, the speakers were loud in there. The voice continued to speak.

**"The chairman wishes to interview the remaining candidates. When your number is called, please come to the first reception room on the second floor. Then; we will start with number 44, Hisoka-sama."**

_Interview...?_ What was the crafty old geezer planning now? Kyu finished pulling up her pants and washed her hands in the sink. In no time she was up on the second floor, leaning casually on the wall of the adjacent room and totally not eavesdropping at all.

_"-want to become a Hunter?" _Kyu heard Netero say in that strangely playful voice of his.

_"I'm not particularly interested in becoming a Hunter, but-" _came Hisoka's reply.

_"But?"_

_"A Hunter license can be very useful-"_

"Ahem."

"Holy-" Kyu jumped, banged her head on a shelf and fell over a table. "Ow-owow-ow..."

The Chairman's green-skinned secretary stood at the doorway, arms crossed. "Please refrain from eavesdropping on the interviews, they are related to the preparation of the final phase and are therefore private information."

Kyu pulled herself off the floor and stuttered, "I-I wasn't eavesdropping. Nope. Not me."

"Of course." Beans looked unconvinced. "Either way, this room is out of bounds. Please return to the first floor."

_Aw man, _she thought as she sheepishly rubbed her head, _I'm getting rusty._ She got ready to leave and try her luck later, but then she heard the slide of the adjacent door, then footsteps leaving in the other direction. Bean tapped the piece of dark plastic fixed on his green blob of a head, then gestured for Kyu to enter the next room. She stuck out her tongue as she passed.

_Lu~cky! My turn already?_

_It is unfortunate we were unable to hear the rest of the questions though._

_Hm. Yeah._

* * *

><p>"Have a seat."<p>

"Can I keep it?" Kyu joked.

"Well~ that depends. I have some questions for you first."

"Sure."

Netero dipped his brush in ink and began dabbing in his notepad. "First, why do you want to become a Hunter?"

"Hm." Kyu thought for a moment. "For the benefits? I don't know."

"I see. Next question. Which of the eight applicants are you keeping an eye on?"

"Everyone, except for the old guy. No offense to old guys."

"None taken. Which of the other eight applicants would you least like to fight?"

The girl thought for a moment. _I wouldn't want to fight Illumi like ever, and fighting Killua would probably mean facing Illumi at some point later... that stupid brother complex pin-head can't keep his nose out of the boy's business. Seriously._

_And you're not reluctant to fight the clown at all? Really?_

_I've had some time to reconsider... and y'know, I think it might even be fun._

_...We're all gonna die._

"Kyu-san."

"Hyuh?! Uh I um. What?"

"The question." Netero was a patient man.

"Oh. Number 301. Though Number 99 is also on my 'do not touch' list."

"Good, good. Last question. Do you know Fugan isn't dead?"

She almost said yes before she got hold of herself. Careful not to betray any emotion, Kyu said in a stony voice, "No. He's dead."

"...Ok. That's all then. You may leave."

* * *

><p>She'd been standing at the window for a while now. She had things to think about, problems that needed solving and no answers. And now, the Chairman turned out to be working with her 'deceased' uncle.<p>

_That shrewd old man... he almost had me there. I really can't trust anyone, can I? Not even the chairman of the Hunter's Association..._

_Hmph. And yet you put your trust in those who've tricked you time and again._

_Hey, I enjoy a good bit of irony. _

_But the first conversation we had... that patronising old git! He's been watching my reactions this whole time!_

_Bam! _Cracks ran along the plaster. Kyu withdrew her fist and growled. _Isaac Netero... you weasel... _

"K-Kyu...?"

_Shit. _Gon and Kurapika were standing a few windows away. She hadn't noticed them, and they hadn't noticed her. They appeared to have been in a heartfelt conversation, judging by the drying tears around the younger boy's eyes, until she so kindly interrupted them by punching the wall in the face.

"Uh." She looked at the dent she'd put in the plaster. "Mosquito."

"You must really hate mosquitoes then." said Kurapika. Kyu didn't miss the hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Mhm. You know what I hate more?" Gon nodded, causing her to hesitate. She _was _going to say 'nosy blondes', but just because she was in a pissy mood was no reason to be rude. So instead she said,

"Spiders."

"Really?" Was that contentment she heard from Kurapika? "We have another thing in common then."

"I never knew you hate spiders. Do you have arachnophobia too?"

"No. My reasons are quite different."

"Ah... ok I understand." _No I don't understand. How could you hate spiders for a reason other than being afraid of them?_

Gon piped, "And why do you hate them?"

"Legs bro. Too many of them. I have a general rule of disliking anything with more than 4 legs."

"Ou. I get it."

Kurapika pondered her statement. "And what of creatures with 12 legs?"

"..._Is _there anything with 12 legs?"

"I was just thinking aloud. Don't worry about it."

"Yeah..." _You're so weird. _"By the way Gon, are you pumped for the Final phase?"

"Yup!"

"Me too. Well, see you guys tomorrow. Or tonight, if the executives are nasty enough to launch the Final phase tonight. I could really use some rest..."

As usual, Mr Smartypants used his extensive knowledge of- well, everything- to prove there was no way they would host the Final phase tonight, even going as far as insulting Kyu's sentence in between the lines. By the time he was done, Kyu was in a mood more sour than lemon flavoured Korean candy, and left as soon as he paused to take a breath. In her opinion, conversing with Kurapika was almost the same as conversing with Kuroro. Only more conceited, and less philosophical. And both equally annoying.

Suddenly, another announcement crackled its way through the speakers.

**"We are encountering some turbulence, please hold tight."**

The airship bounced right on cue. Gon and Kurapika gripped the railings near the windows. Kyu _tried _to do the same, but was too far away to reach it in time. So she grabbed the next closest thing in reach, and wrapped her arms around it tightly.

"Hey, get off!"

The airship shook more violently. Kyu hugged the robed boy harder, much to his chagrin. Gon laughed. Kurapika wasn't so amused.

"Get off!" Kyu responded by headbutting him in the stomach. Which shut the Kurta up immediately with a muffled "_Oof."_

When the turbulence passed, Kyu slowly unknotted her fingers, blinked, then stepped away from the fuming boy when she was sure the turbulence had indeed passed. She used her best innocent expression and smiled.

"What the hell?!"

Her best innocent expression wasn't a very good one. "Uh. Has anyone told you how much you resemble a pole? Like, not as an insult, but a, y'know, compliment. Like a big huggable-"

"Kyu, are you afraid of heights?" asked Gon.

The girl shook her head. "Bathophobia."

"You're afraid of baths?"

"What? No, bathophobia means-"

"A fear of falling from high places." The other boy cut in. Oh, how Kyu wanted to wipe that smug smirk off Kurapika's face. _I hope the next phase involves fighting, or another hunting game. Because you're gonna be my first target, you smart alec._

"Eeeh... Isn't it the same thing?"

"No Gon-"

"It's not the same thing you dummy." Now Kyu was the smug one. "I have no problem standing someplace high- such as on an airship- and enjoying the scenery. Whereas a person with a fear of heights wouldn't go anywhere near an airship."

"I get it. Thank you for explaining!" His smile caught the girl off-guard. She stared at him, wide-eyed, wondering how anyone his age could be so sincere. Gon noticed her stare. He tilted his head, then rubbed his cheek and asked, "Is it still there?"

"Huh?"

Gon pointed at himself. "Ah, I thought you were looking at something stuck on my face."

"Oh. No, there isn't. I was... thinking."

"Ok. Kurapika, let's go to the canteen, Killua's probably waiting for us."

Kurapika nodded, turned to follow Gon then turned around again. "Good luck." he said to Kyu.

"You too."

* * *

><p>"Please, remind me how I got dragged into this again?" Kyu complained for the fiftieth time and crossed her arms. She, Gon, Kurapika and Leorio were crammed into a small tour bus that smelt faintly of vomit, along with 20 or so other tourists. No one payed any attention to her. Kyu was seated with Leorio, who snoring his head off. Gon was listening intently to the tour guide while Kurapika was looked out the window and pretended not to hear a word she said.<p>

Kyu scowled, and shoved Leorio's hair out of her face. Of course she knew how she was dragged into this. She'd dragged herself into it. Like the idiot she was. The moment Illumi presented himself in front of Killua, she knew there was going to be trouble. And when Gon threw a tantrum during the introductory lecture and threatened- yes, actually threatened- the long-haired assassin, Kyu was certain he was going to do something stupid. The wrist-breaking bit she'd anticipated, but for Gon to go as far as chasing Killua all the way home...

_He's crazy. _I'm _crazy. God... why did I have to follow him into a nest of assassins? Three of whom have already tried to kill me...  
><em>

_Cus you cray cray bruh._

_Hmph. Yeah._

The final phase itself had gone pretty well. Illumi gave her a free pass so he could confront Killua, though she'd been pretty disappointed since her next opponent would have been Hisoka. An upside to her hopeless situation was that she'd gotten Hisoka's mobile number.

_That was actually probably the craziest thing I've done since that time I spiked Kuroro's cocktail with John Crow Batty rum... ah~ good times. _

A very drunk Kuroro bragging about his fish was funny. A very angry band of Spiders coming after her neck was not so funny. In her opinion, still worth every broken bone and laceration. And an hour of involuntary dancing afterwards, courtesy of Shalnark's Nen.

The bus hit a bump. Leorio's head smacked into the top of the seat, waking him up. The man let out of chain of curses, and stopped only when the female guide gave him a dirty look. Leorio gave her a sheepish smile and sat back. Kyu clicked her tongue and thought, _What a sucker for pretty women._

"Will everyone please look to your left? That is Kukuroo mountain, where the Zoldyck family lives. A forest surrounds the..."

The rest of her explanation faded into the rumbling of the bus engine. Kyu pressed her face against the window. Phinks always said she had a vivid imagination, but this was exactly what she'd imagined the assassins' home to look like. Dark, ominous and... mountainy. In other words; really awesome.

_Bzzt! _Kyu's phone vibrated in her pocket. A new text message.

**(1)** **New text message. From: Shal(nerd)**

**S: Hey, how did you go? ^.^**

Kyu rolled her eyes. She typed a message and hit 'send'.

**K: how do you think i went? pass, duuuuhhh . **

Shalnark replied almost instantly.

**S: I'm only asking, sheesh **

**K: hahaha~ sorry sorry. type your full stops dammit shal.**

**S: Don't feel like it**

**S: You type your capitals**

**K: no screw you the caps button is too small on my phone. **

**S: And yet you always type Dancho's name in caps**

**K: yeah, cus like i have it on copy and paste.**

**S: -_-**

**K: no kidding, i do. speaking of Kuroro-san, he had a message for you guys. yorknew city, 1st of september. our next mission or some shit.**

**S: Okay**

**S: Got it**

**K: do me a favour and relay that to uvo and nobu will you? i'm really not buggered to find them, doing stuff right now. i can text everyone else. tyvm.  
><strong>

**S: You are so lazy Kyu, I don't know why Dancho always chooses you as the messenger**

Kyu was halfway through an angry retort when Leorio leaned to peek at what she was reading. Kyu instantly snapped her phone shut, and pushed his spectacled face away.

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later, there were at the gates that marked the start of the Zoldyck property.<p>

Also known as the Door to Hades, according to the guide.

Kyu walked past a couple taking photos like all get-go to inspect the greyish-black metal of the gates. She tapped it gently with a knuckle.

_Da~yuum... this place looks even cooler up close._

_Didn't you say it was terrible idea to come here...?_

_I never said that. I just thought it. So long as there's no hit or bounty on me, I should be safe... Theoretically. _

_Hmm yes, because theories are always so much more comforting that solid facts, such as Silva will probably kill you anyway for being on his property._

_Uh..._

Two men walked past her. Seconds later, a harsh metallic scrunching came from the direction of the guard station. Kyu turned to see what the commotion was about.

"Open the gate!" Demanded the one of the men, grabbing the old guard by the collar.

"I-I cannot do that. The master would not be pleased."

"Don't worry," said the other, "we're going to kill your master."

The old man sighed. Kyu raised an eyebrow. Why would a frightened old man _sigh_? Sighing was an exhalation of air used to express relief. But this old man seemed to be sighing in exasperation.

Kyu watched as he held up a key, trembling as he did, and watched as the thugs snatched it from his hand and entered the side door. Gon rushed to the side of the old man to help him up. The old guard was unharmed.

"Man... Now Mike's going to end up eating between meals again."

"Huh?" said Gon. If the thugs had heard what the guard said, they would probably have gone 'huh?' as well. But since they were on the other side of the gate, they screamed instead.

_Clang! _The chocolate coloured door opened. A clawed, furry hand the size of a table reached through and dumped two human skeletons, complete with clothing and tufts of hair, on the ground. The door closed.

The tour guide screamed. The other tourists followed her lovely advice and screamed along. They wasted no time in rushing back the safety of the bus.

"Hey boys!"

The four people still outside the gates turned. Kyu assumed she was included in the 'boys' the guide was calling out to.

The woman stood half in and half out of the bus, waving her flag around. "What are you doing? Get on the bus!"

Gon got to his and told her they were staying. The woman gave him an incredulous look, but told the driver to leave anyway.

* * *

><p>After a whole lot of talking from Gon, the guard was convinced they were Killua's friends. Kyu didn't bother correcting him when he assumed that they were. She wanted nothing to do with any Zoldyck, innocent or not. A lot of her bad experiences were tied with the surname 'Zoldyck'.<p>

The sky had gone dark by the time they'd finished talking. The five of them went to the front of the gate. Leorio was the first to have a go at opening those thick metal doors. Kyu had to laugh at his clumsy attempts. First she watched him push until he was red face, then he tried pulling the door backwards, pulling it to the left, pulling it to the right, and generally in every direction he could.

He stepped back, shaking his hands. "I've tried pushing and pulling, but it won't budge! Are you sure it isn't locked?"

"You just aren't strong enough," said the guard.

"That's absurd! I've been using all my strength!"

Kyu pretended to cough. "Which apparently isn't a lot." Leorio glared.

"Just watch." the guard told him. His jacket and shirt was off, revealing the bulges of muscle that lined his body. "This gate's official name is the Testing Gate. Anyone who cannot open this gate-" he gave a dramatic 'hnm!' "-is unqualified to enter the Zoldyck estate."

Zebro placed his hands on the gate and pushed. Only unlike Leorio's 'pushes', his push forced the first door open. Gon and Kurapika gasped. Kyu didn't blame them. That door was _thick. _

She nudged Leorio in the ribs"Psst." She whispered. "How does it feel to get outclassed by an old geezer? Does that make you feel like an older geezer?"

"Shut up!" he hissed back.

The rumble of the doors sliding shut covered up the sound of Kyu's sniggering.

Zebro was sweating hard. "As you just saw, the door closes automatically, so you'll want to run in the second it opens. You don't need to worry about Mike. He has orders not to attack anyone who enters through the Testing Gate. Still, this is getting tougher as I age... But they'll fire me if I can't open the gate, so I need to keep in shape."

He turned and looked at the doors again. "I should mention that each of gate one's doors weighs two tonnes."

"TWO TONNES?!" Exclaimed Leorio. "You're not supposed to be able to open that... Wait what did you say? Gate one?"

"Yes. Have a look."

They looked. The word 'gawked' would be more accurate in Leorio's case.

"There are seven gates. When you go up a gate, the weight doubles."

"Doubles?!"

"The number of gates that open depends on the amount of strength you use. Incidentally, when young Killua returned, he opened gates one through three."

Gon had a half frown on his face. "Gate three? That would be twelve tonnes!"

"Sixteen tonnes, Gon." corrected Kurapika. Gon laughed sheepishly.

"Do you understand now? This is what's required to just get in the door. They live in a completely different world."

While Gon talked to Zebro, Kyu peered at the gate. She put her hand flat on the first gate, pushing it gently to test its weight. The door moved a centimetre. _Crap. __Too much power. _She glanced at Gon and the others to see if they'd noticed anything. It appeared not. Everyone was busy staring at Gon like a maniac for demanding to enter through the side door. Wait, now they were heading inside to make a call. Kyu waited patiently outside. Minutes passed, and suddenly Gon was shouting. Kyu watched him come out, fishing rod in hand.

_What is he doing...?_

_Climbing over the wall it seems._

"Gon the hell are you doin'?"

Leorio was right behind him yelling, "Hey! Stop it, Gon!"

The green-clothed boy was tugging at the line he'd hooked over the top of the gate now. "It's okay. You three can wait here. I'll go by myself."

"I can't let you do that!"

"I'll be fine!"

More drama. Kyu smiled and watched from the sidelines. Kurapika and Leorio tried convincing him to stop climbing, but to no avail. In the end, Zebro came up and offered him the key. In the end (after much sweet-talking from Zebro), he opened the testing gate for them to take a look at Mike and hopefully not get eaten.

They weren't even a few metres into the Zoldyck estate when Leorio began to have second thoughts.

"Oi, is it really okay for us to come in?"

"Yes, you'll be safe because you entered through the testing gate." the old guard assured him. "Mike! Come here!"

His voice echoed through the seemingly empty forest. But Kyu could hear the forest, and it was far from empty. One particular sound drew closer and closer even before the echo ended. The sound of heavy breathing of something huge, and the brush of fur of leaves.

And then it was there. Mike, in all of his 10 foot tall glory and dead eyes.

"Gon-kun, do you understand now?"

Gon was in shock. Beads of sweats dripped from his chin. Kyu could see his knees shaking.

"This is a trained hunting dog. It's nothing like the wild animals you're accustomed to. You must have expected to be able to communicate with him. Until you saw his eyes. Mike is currently memorising the appearances and scents of humans he's never seen. There's nothing else on his mind. He's like a machine. Gon-kun, could you fight him?"

The boy shook his head violently. "No, I'm scared. I don't want to fight him!"

"Well, how long will you guys be here?"

"Until we meet Killua! We won't leave before then!"

Zebro smiled. "Then please come this way."

* * *

><p>Kyu waited for them to leave. They'd forgotten about her. And she was too busy admiring Mike.<p>

...

...

"Do you like him?"

"Holy-! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" yelped Kyu.

Zeno simply stroked his mustache and laughed. "Go on, pet him."

Kyu gazed at the dog, then back at the old man. "...He won't bite, right?"

"Perhaps."

Kyu moved closer to the sleek creature. When it didn't move, she reached out and stroked its tyrian purple fur. She couldn't stop the smile from spreading on her face. But then she remembered the old man standing next to her and stopped patting Mike. Killua's grandfather, Zeno Zoldyck, father of Silva Zoldyck and the man who'd been under contract to kill her some two years ago.

"So... hi?"

"Don't waste my time on greetings, we've met."

"Yes, yes we have. Then you tried to impale me with a dragon."

Zeno shrugged. "I did impale you with my Dragon Lance. But that's all sorted. What brings you to Kukuroo mountain? Any girl with common sense wouldn't step into an assassin's lair."

Kyu sighed. "That boy wearing green clothes who was here earlier? Yeah. His fault. He became friends with your grandson during the Hunter Exam. So did the other two. Then Illumi threw a bitch fit and sent Killua home. And now Gon- the green kid- is here trying to 'rescue' Killua from you guys. I don't even know."

"That does sound like Illumi. He's far too attached to Killua for his own good. That still doesn't explain why you're here. Unless you too befriended Killua."

_Crack. _A twig snapped between her fingers. "No I didn't. I felt... concerned; these guys have no idea what they're getting themselves into."

"A spectator, then. Very well. Enjoy your stay, and feel free to drop by the main house. I could use some company. Or a new contract." He chuckled, then disappeared. As if on cue, Mike plodded off into the forest.

Kyu was left alone. She stared at the broken twig in her hand, then looked back at the Testing Gate. She had some spare time. And that gate was begging to be tested.

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**Well, see you guys in February! Merry Christmas (and a Happy New Year)!**

**Bloop.**


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